LEDYARD, Conn. (AP) — Undefeated German middleweight Gennady Golovkin stopped English challenger Matthew Macklin in the third round Saturday night to successfully defend his WBA and IBO titles.
Golovkin improved to 27-0 with his 24th knockout and 14th in a row, using a left hand to the body to flatten Macklin (29-5) 1:22 into the third. Golovkin dominated the first two rounds, landing several hard combinations.
Golovkin has made five successful title defenses and hasn’t gone the distance in a fight since June 2008 against Amar Amari in an eight-round bout.
Macklin has lost three of his last four fights. He lost a split decision to Felix Sturm in June 2011 for the WBA super middleweight crown, and dropped another title shot in March 2012 to Sergio Martinez.