Update On Gennady Golovkin-Danny Jacobs Talks

The WBA ruled that their standard slicing of the pie for a purse bid, a 75-25% split in favor of the champ, will stand. So where does that leave the GGG VS Danny Jacobs proposed tussle?

Jacobs wanted a sweeter split, being that he holds the WBA regular middleweight crown. Golovkin holds the WBA’s XXL version. The WBA didn’t see the logic of the Brooklyn boxer. So, is this thing off the rails? We know that the WBA gave all parties till Oct 22 to hash out a deal.

I reached out to reps for both teams. Promoter Tom Loeffler said negotiations continue. And Andre Rozier, Jacobs’ trainer, said the same.

Ok, that’s promising, right? I hope so, speaking as a fan.

Rozier told me he really doesn’t feel the WBA not comprehending that his guy deserves a better split than one that would be afforded a non champion. He thinks the sanctioning body getting a taste of two belt purses is a “scam” and said “it should be even Steven or at least 60-40.”

So, he said, he’s optimistic, being an “eternal optimist,” that makes sense, that Loeffler and Al Haymon can come to terms before Oct 22. Because, Rozier said, he can picture the wheels off the wagon if a purse bid is forced. “If it goes to bid then I think it falls apart.” But “these guys need each other for a big fight,” he noted.

I wondered, is Jacobs married to 60-40… Would he do 62-38..65-35? Rozier didn’t want to get that deep into the weeds…

Loeffler too wasn’t into getting into negotiation specifics. “We are proceeding with negotiations,” he said.

I wanted to get a gauge of his level of optimism but he wasn’t keen to tip his hand.

With my fan hat on I say: we sort of need this to get hashed out. Too much time and energy has been spent on pre fight chatter and negotiations. The sport works best when we are talking about the bouts, not the back room and board room stuff.