(FILES) In this file photo taken on September 14, 2018 pro boxer Canelo Alvarez (L) and WBC/WBA middleweight champion Gennady Golovkin are held back after facing off during their official weigh-in at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada. / AFP PHOTO / GETTY IMAGES NORTH AMERICA / AL BELLO
Gennady Golovkin and Saul “Canelo” Alvarez faced off for the final time ahead of their eagerly awaited rematch here Friday as they comfortably made the weight for their middleweight grudge match.
An ill-tempered confrontation before several thousand fans at the T-Mobile Arena saw a minor scuffle after the two fighters came together after stepping on the scales.
Kazakh fighter Golovkin, the defending WBA, WBC and IBO champion, weighed in slightly heavier at 159.6 pounds (72.4 kgs).
Mexico’s Alvarez (49-1-2, 34 knockouts) meanwhile came in at 159.4 pounds, well within the 160lb limit.
Members of both entourages quickly got between the two fighters to head off a physical confrontation after Alvarez appeared to rush towards Golovkin, who didn’t flinch.
A relaxed-looking Golovkin later took a verbal jab at his Mexican rival after the face-off.
Asked what he had seen when he looked at Alvarez, Golovkin replied: “I saw he’s like a clown. He is showman. He is not true guy.”
A stony-faced Alvarez meanwhile claimed a psychological victory.
“I won the weigh-in, and tomorrow I’ll win the fight,” he said.
Golovkin, (38-0-1, 34 knockouts), is chasing a record-breaking 21st consecutive defence of his middleweight crown when he faces Alvarez again on Saturday.
Saturday’s 12-round battle comes almost a year to the day after the two fighters battled to a controversial draw in their first encounter.
A planned rematch for May 5 was cancelled after Alvarez twice tested positive for the banned performance enhancer Clenbuterol in February and was subsequently hit with a six-month suspension.
Alvarez blamed the test results on eating contaminated meat in his native Mexico.