GENNADY GOLOVKIN will defend his WBC, IBF and WBA world middleweight titles against Danny Jacobs at Madison Square Garden on March 18.
The fight – which sees the world’s top two middleweights collide – will be aired on HBO pay-per-view in America.
The WBA had ordered the fight to be made as Jacobs holds their secondary title, with purse bids set to be held on Monday [December 19]. However both sides have been able to reach a deal before then and the fight has been officially confirmed.
It’s official, I’m fighting Danny Jacobs on March 18 at MSG @thegarden NY on HBO ppv, see you there! pic.twitter.com/hljRlnh0LS
— Gennady Golovkin (@GGGBoxing) December 17, 2016
Negotiations for the fight had been ongoing for a while, with December 10 the original preferred date, but Golovkin – who has struggled to lure the biggest and best names into the ring – now faces his toughest test to date.
It marks the second time the unbeaten Kazakh will have boxed on HBO PPV after his demolition of David Lemieux last year. Jacobs, who is advised by Al Haymon, has not boxed on HBO since 2010.
The cancer survivor and amateur standout suffered his sole career setback in 2010 when Dmitry Pirog stopped him in five. His last outing came in September, when he stopped Sergio Mora in seven, but prior to that he earned a career-best victory by blitzing Peter Quillin inside a round.
Golovkin’s last fight also came in September, when he stopped a physically overmatched Kell Brook in five rounds.
