NEW YORK–Canelo Alvarez is all too aware that his desire to knock out Gennadiy Golovkin may come at a great cost.

At a press conference in Manhattan to announce his third fight with the Kazakh puncher, the Mexican superstar and current 168-pound undisputed champion said he is willing to put his health on the line in order to achieve the sort of finality their rivalry has thus far lacked. Their highly anticipated trilogy bout will take place at 168 on Sept. 17 at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas.

Alvarez and Golovkin drew in their first fight, in 2017; In 2018, Alvarez won a close majority decision. Both results were controversial, albeit the second fight was less so.

Since the third fight was announced, Alvarez has made it clear he harbors great resentment toward Golovkin and has gone so far as to promise that he will be gunning for the knockout win.

When Eddie Hearn, Alvarez’s promoter, questioned his charge about whether or not he was cognizant of the potential damage that awaited him in trying to press for a knockout against Golovkin, Alvarez responded with his usual aplomb.

“He’s a dangerous fighter, he’s a good fighter,” Alvarez said of Golovkin. “But if you want something you need to risk [yourself]. I know that I’m able to risk something to accomplish what I want.”

After 24 rounds, neither fighter has been able to truly hurt the other. Yet Alvarez, who has never appreciated the way Golovkin spoke about his positive PED test, has not lacked the motivation to put on a beatdown of his rival. Alvarez has made it a point to be more abrasive than usual in the face-offs.

“As always I like to respect my opponents,” Alvarez said. “I don’t need to do these kinds of things to sell pay per views. I don’t like it. But this time is different. This is the person I am. I’m not trying to be another person. That’s why I’m acting like this.”