Gennady Golovkin-Marco Antonio Rubio does very well on HBO

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Gennady Golovkin, right, stopped Marco Antonio Rubio in the second round Saturday/Photo by Associated Press

 

The Gennady Golovkin-Marco Antonio Rubio middleweight main event Saturday at StubHub Center drew an HBO viewing crowd of 1,304,000 viewers, making it the second-highest premium cable boxing event of 2014.

Golovkin, of Kazakhstan, stopped Mexico’s Rubio in the second round and is now 31-0 with 28 knockouts. It was his 18th knockout in succession.

Golovkin’s middleweight belt was not on the line because Rubio failed to make the 160-pound weight limit a day earlier, coming in at 161.8.

The event also drew 9,323 in live attendance, a sellout and  a record for boxing at the venue.

“This past Saturday night’s atmosphere at the StubHub Center truly captured the passion that Gennady’s fans have for him,” said Tom Loeffler, managing director of K2 Promotions, which promotes Golovkin. “In two years, Gennady has become boxing’s biggest must-see attraction and we expect 2015 to catapult him to even greater heights.”

Golovkin first fought in the U.S. in September 2012.

The Golovkin-Rubio fight will be replayed tonight (Tuesday) on HBO at 10:05 p.m. (Pacific time).

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Marco Antonio Rubio doesn’t make weight, can’t fight for Golovkin’s belt

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Gennady Golovkin/Photo courtesy of Associated Press

 

Marco Antonio Rubio on Friday weighed in at 161.8 pounds for his fight Saturday against middleweight champion Gennady Golovkin at StubHub Center (on HBO). According to a publicist working the event, Rubio signed a new contract for 162 pounds just before the weigh-in because he knew he wasn’t going to make the 160-pound limit.

This means Rubio will not be able to challenge for Golovkin’s belt. It also means Rubio was stripped of an interim belt he held.

Golovkin weighed in at 159 pounds.

 

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Even more seats added for Golovkin-Rubio, will go on sale Tuesday

Gennady Golovkin/Photo by Associated Press

 

The middleweight title fight between champion Gennady Golovkin and Marco Antonio Rubio set for Saturday at StubHub Center (on HBO) has proven to be quite the hot ticket. K2 Promotions, which promotes Golovkin, already put an extra 300 seats on sale and they sold out. Now, 284 more bleacher seats will go on sale Tuesday at noon.

Those tickets are priced at $53, which does not include service fees. They can be purchased by calling 888-929-7849, as well as by visiting the StubHub Center box office Monday through Friday until 6 p.m.

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Former heavyweight champion Leon Spinks in Las Vegas hospital

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Leon Spinks/Photo courtesy of Associated Press

 

Former heavyweight champion Leon Spinks is in a Las Vegas hospital after a second operation for abdominal issues, the Associated Press reported Monday morning.

According to the story, Spinks had his second surgery over the past few days after experiencing complications from a first emergency surgery.

His wife, Brenda Spinks, spoke to the Associated Press.

“It’s going to be a long road ahead,” she said, “but he’s strong and he’s starting to recover.”

Spinks, 61, is from St. Louis. He shocked the boxing world when, in February 1978, he won a split-decision over Muhammad Ali to win two of the heavyweight world titles. It was just Spinks’ eighth professional fight.

Spinks went 26-17-3 with 14 knockouts fighting from 1977-95.

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Nonito Donaire takes on Nicholas Walters underneath Golovkin-Rubio

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Nonito Donaire/Photo courtesy of Top Rank Inc.

 

With all the hoopla being created by middleweight champion Gennady Golovkin defending his title against Marco Antonio Rubio on Saturday at StubHub Center in Carson (on HBO), let’s not forget that the main undercard fight shouldn’t be too shabby, either.

In it, Nonito Donaire (33-2, 21 KOs) of San Leandro via the Philippines will defend his featherweight belt against Nicholas Walters (24-0, 20 KOs) of Jamaica. This could be a good one.

“I am very excited for this fight,” Donaire said.

He’d better be as Walters is no slouch. And he’s hungry to make an even bigger name for himself.

“This is my dream fight,” said Walters, who also owns a piece of the title. “It’s now the time to show everyone who is the best 126-pound world champion in the entire world.”

 

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