Demetrius Andrade wants the Golovkin-Derevyanchenko winner
Demetrius Andrade could have a vested interest in the Gennadiy Golovkin-Sergiy Derevyanchenko fight for the vacant IBF middleweight title Saturday night at Madison Square Garden in New York on DAZN.
Andrade, who holds the WBO title, said before the Golovkin-Derevyanchenko clash that he wants to fight the winner if he successfully defends his own title in December.
Andrade (28-0 17 knockouts) expects a competitive fight at the Garden.
“Fighting either one of them would be cool,” Andrade said. “Sergiy is a durable guy. His only loss is to Danny Jacobs, one of the best out there, and we’re going to see what is left in GGGs tank tonight. Has he gotten a little older or not? We can’t tell until tonight, and it’s a good step up for Sergiy to see his skill level. Either way, I would get in the ring with the winner as they are both stand out guys. GGG is the more popular guy, and I want to go out and beat the popular guy. He may not be the most skillful out there. He’s put in the work, they’ve moved him well and he’d be a great guy to put on the resume, even if he loses – it’s still GGG.
“I’m not frustrated, I’m working on my own legacy. I want to stay active, fight who we can fight, fight my mandatories and do what we have to do so there’s no more excuses for why people won’t fight me. There’s a small window of names out there now and sooner or later, we’re going to have to fight. So how can I be frustrated when I am a world champion again, fighting four times in a year, I’m getting paid, I’m chilling, my family is good. There’s nothing to be frustrated about. It would still be an honor to get in with Canelo (Alvarez). With GGG, they’ve done a lot for the sport and so am I. It’s going to happen, me and Canelo are in the same age group.
“When it comes to skills, I do believe I’m the most talented fighter out there. So people don’t want their business destroyed by fighting me. But at the end of the day, you are fighting one of the best. You’re going to say that you fought Demetrius Andrade – Olympic champion, two-weight world champion. What is there to be upset about? Everyone is fighting around the same time, GGG-Derevyanchenko tonight, Canelo in November, I’ll be fighting in December, we can fight in May or June, so it’s all lining up, and all I have to do is keep winning and looking good.”
Andrade was ordered by the WBO on Wednesday to defend against Steven Butler. Andrade and Butler are expected to begin negotiations soon.