HBO2 playdates: Sept. 2 (4:15 p.m.) and 4 (midnight)
In a scheduled 12-round middleweight title bout, Gennady Golovkin (23-0, 20 KOs) of Stuttgart, Germany, puts his belt on the line against top-tier contender Grzegorz Proksa (28-1, 21 KOs) of Redhill, Surrey, United Kingdom, with both fighters making their HBO debuts. Fresh off a third-round knockout of Makoto Fuchigami in May, the undefeated Golovkin, 30, has never been knocked down as an amateur or pro. He recorded resounding amateur victories over such talents as Lucian Bute and Andy Lee, and was a silver medalist at the 2004 Olympics for his native Kazakhstan. Golovkin’s last ten fights have ended in knockouts, and no opponent has gone the distance with him since 2008.
After losing for the first time as a pro in March to Kerry Hope, Proksa, 27, has rebounded nicely with back-to-back victories, including an eighth-round knockout of Hope in their July rematch, and is currently the European middleweight titleholder.
The opening bout is a 12-round, 154-pound showdown of touted fighters Sergiy Dzinziruk (37-1, 24 KOs) from Hamburg, Germany, and undefeated rising star Jonathan Gonzalez (15-0, 13 KOs) of San Juan, Puerto Rico. Making his second appearance on HBO, the 36-year-old Dzinziruk is returning to the super welterweight division after moving up in weight and suffering his first loss to middleweight lineal champion Sergio Martinez. After starting his career with an astounding 13 consecutive knockouts, the 23-year-old Gonzalez has shown stamina to match his power, recently going the distance for back-to-back unanimous decision victories.
Immediately after the doubleheader of action, HBO will present the premiere of episode #1 of the all-access series 24/7 Chavez Jr./Martinez at 11:45 p.m. ET/PT.
