Golovkin vs Brook: WBA belt not on the line

Gennady Golovkin holds three middleweight world title belts, but one of them won’t be up for grabs this coming Saturday when he faces Kell Brook, as the WBA has declined to sanction the fight.

WBA President Gilberto Mendoza Jr expressed some regret about the ruling, which was made due to Brook being a welterweight moving up two divisions, having never fought at 160:

“What I most regret is that there are no boxers at 160 pounds who will fight against ‘Triple G,’ and Brook has to move up two divisions to fight against him,” WBA president Gilberto Mendoza Jr. said in making the announcement.

With Brook (36-0, 25 KO) having never fought as a middleweight, he’ll still have a chance to win the IBF and WBC belts from Golovkin (35-0, 32 KO) when the two square off at London’s O2 Arena, live on HBO and Sky Box Office.

But Golovkin remains the heavy favorite, with few seeing Brook having much of a chance at what would be the upset of the year (or decade), if he can pull it off.