BY Mike Copinger
March 21, 2022
Source: ESPN
Photo Source: Boxing Scene
Middleweight champion Gennadiy Golovkin (GGG) filed a lawsuit against Oscar De La Hoya's Golden Boy Promotions on Friday in Los Angeles seeking at least $3 million in damages in connection with the September 2018 rematch with Canelo Alvarez.
According to the complaint, obtained by ESPN, GGG wants to be paid interest on the $9,025,351 Golden Boy still owed him in January 2021. The funds, which were paid by July 6, 2021, were part of the financial upside of the event.
Golovkin was entitled to 45% of all gross revenue -- gate receipts, sponsorship, pay-per-view revenue, closed-circuit TV, international TV rights, etc. -- after Golden Boy received the first $2.5 million in net ticket revenue.
The money was due within 10 days of Golden Boy Promotion's payment from HBO for the pay-per-view buys, according to the suit. The suit doesn't state when HBO paid Golden Boy. The 160-pound championship bout, which Alvarez won via majority decision, generated approximately 1.1 million PPV buys in the U.S. ($94 million) and $27,059,850 in ticket sales.
GGG alleges breach of contract, breach of fiduciary duty, conversion, constructive trust and accounting. He seeks a jury trial.
The Kazakhstan native, who now resides in Los Angeles, contended that the sum of $9,025,351 was incorrect due to an accounting error. On Sept. 27, Golden Boy delivered a revised accounting report that showed GGG was due an additional $1.375 million, per court documents.
Golovkin demanded payment but Golden Boy has refused, according to the suit. The boxer seeks at least $450,000 in sponsorship revenue, $177,458 in "other funds simply not paid though listed on Golden Boy's own accountings," approximately $31,500 (45% of around $70,000 in additional PPV revenue), expenses incurred by the postponement of the rematch after Alvarez tested positive for a performance-enhancing drug and unapportioned insurance expenses.
A Golden Boy Promotions spokesperson declined to comment on the lawsuit.
Golovkin, ESPN's No. 2 middleweight, returns April 9 in Japan for a title unification against Ryota Murata. If GGG wins, and Alvarez defeats Dmitry Bivol on May 7, they'll meet a third time Sept. 17 on DAZN PPV.
Alvarez sued Golden Boy Promotions in 2020 and was released from his contract. He recently signed a multifight deal with Eddie Hearn's Matchroom Boxing, which would promote Canelo-GGG 3. Alvarez was not named in the suit.
BoxingScene first reported on the lawsuit.
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