Kazakh powerhouse Gennady Golovkin has warned cocky veteran Oscar de la Hoya that his claim he could beat him in a boxing match at the age of 47 would have fatal consequences, dismissing the "dirty" controversial former champion.
Multiple ex-champion De La Hoya became the latest major name to announce plans to come out of retirement last month, surprisingly claiming that he would beat IBF and IBO middleweight champion Golovkin despite being nine years older than the feared puncher.
Now Golovkin has brutally dismissed De La Hoya's claim, issuing a deathly warning to his potential rival in a grim assessment of the approach he would take to a scrap between them.
"You know Oscar - you know how dirty his mouth is," Golovkin fired back when asked by AFP for his opinion on the challenge.
"Everything involving Gennady Golovkin, for him, is a nightmare. He can say whatever.
"But let me put it this way - If I got an opportunity to legally kill a person in the ring, I might seize it."
Some supporters questioned whether Golovkin, who is known for his nice guy image outside of the ring, could have been misinterpreted for comments that appeared to be uncharacteristically acrimonious.
"I don't believe GGG ever said this," responded one boxing fan. "But I'm 100 percent sure he would go out to seriously hurt De La Hoya."
De La Hoya has not fought since losing to Manny Pacquiao in 2008 and admitted last year that he had taken cocaine during an orgy with two women since he ended his boxing career.
"You know how easy 'GGG' would be for me?" he asked Boxing Scene, discussing the 38-year-old known for his knockout power.
"Oh, my gosh. I always took a good shot and I always took apart fighters like him. In my mind, it would be that easy."
Golovkin's reference to De La Hoya's trash-talking relates to the build-up the fighter-turned-promoter played in his two huge fights with Canelo Alvarez in 2017 and 2018.
Ahead of his clash with unbeaten Pole Kamil Szeremeta in Florida on Friday, Golovkin did not rule participating in the kind of lucrative novelty fights that have been arranged between former rival Floyd Mayweather and YouTube personalty Logan Paul recently.
"Right now, I'm in my professional boxing career and I don't see the need for that myself," he said. "But in future, if there is a demand and an interest, then why not?"
Also on rt.com 'What IS he smoking?' Boxing great De La Hoya derided after claiming Golovkin would be 'easy' fight - TWELVE YEARS after retiring