By Jake Donovan

Fans have turned out in droves for the West Coast debut of Gennady Golovkin. The flame-throwing puncher from Kazakhstan faces Mexico's Marco Antonio Rubio in front of a sold-out, Standing-Room-Only crowd at the StubHub Center in Carson, California. 

Golovkin (30-0, 27KOs) is widely viewed as the future and present of the middleweight division. His all-action style has led to knockout wins in all 12 of his middleweight title fights heading into Saturday evening, having stopped his past 17 opponents overall. 

The showdown with Rubio marks Golovkin’s 6th appearance on HBO (Saturday, 10:00 p.m. ET), quickly emerging as the face of the network as he expands his brand name in the United States. His most recent win came in July, scoring a one-sided third round stoppage of former middleweight titlist Daniel Geale in New York City.

Rubio (59-6-1, 51KOs) makes his third attempt at a middleweight title. The Mexican puncher has come up well short in bids versus Kelly Pavlik – knocked out in nine rounds in Feb. ’09 – and Julio Cesar Chavez Jr – dropping a decision in Feb. ’12. 

Few gave Rubio much of a chance of winning against the unbeaten Golovkin, placed as high as 60-1 by some oddsmakers. Those dismal chances appeared to have disappeared following his follies at the scales, showing up nearly two pounds over the limit – already looking soft – and refusing to shed the extra weight, instead paying a $100,000 fine. 

The two sides reached a deal in order to allow the fight to go on, with Rubio forced to vacate his interim middleweight belt at the scales. Golovkin remains eligible to win the title, while his own alphabet belt is not at stake since Rubio is overweight. 

The only significance that comes with the interim title is that the winner will be named mandatory challenger to World lineal middleweight king Miguel Cotto. 

Read on to see how the staff at Boxingscene.com believes Saturday’s middleweight action goes down at the StubHub Center. 
 
B-SCENE.COM STAFF PREDICTIONS: GENNADY GOLOVKIN vs. MARCO ANTONIO RUBIO
 
Ryan Burton (Golovkin KO6): “Rubio is a tough, solid fighter who always seems to come up short in his step up fights. GGG is much more disciplined and focus than Pavlik and Chavez Jr were. Rubio will be brave in the ring but won't see the second half of the fight.”

Mike Coppinger (Golovkin KO): “It figures to be more of the same for GGG. Rubio has fought on the highest levels, but he's never come close to winning, absorbing beatdowns by the likes of Julio Cesar Chavez Jr. and Kelly Pavlik in title fights. It will be entertaining while it lasts, but Golovkin will steamroll Rubio in the mid rounds.”
 
Jake Donovan (Golovkin KO3): “I don’t dismiss the theory that Rubio simply stopped trying to make weight, in order to preserve his strength. But he didn’t look great at the weigh-in, and even fighters in peak physical condition struggle to remain upright versus Golovkin. What could’ve been a competitive middleweight shootout for as long as it lasted has become a stain on the sport, and most likely another one-sided rout for the unbeaten Golovkin.”

Lyle Fitzsimmons (Golovkin KO1): “Rubio is a respected, rugged veteran who’ll no doubt be willing to go out on his shield. That’s exactly what’ll happen before the 1st round ends.”

Cliff Rold (Golovkin KO): “Rubio is probably still a legit top ten contender at 160. That's how bad it is right now at Middle. Nothing against Rubio, but he was long in the tooth when Chavez beat him. Golovkin by ritual sacrifice as he does the Bernard Hopkins "just win in the absence of a serious class to challenge me" dance.”

Reynaldo Sanchez (Golovkin KO6): “Rubio is the kind of opponent that GGG must take to conquer the American market, I think Golovkin take another win but not easy, I think Rubio will fight very hard for 4-5 rounds and fall by TKO in six rounds. This will be an exciting fight while it lasts, fans will enjoy a great fight.”

Alexey Sukachev (Golovkin KO7): “Rubio has come overweight for this fight. It won't help him much but at least he can pretend he would last a bit longer than Triple G's usual opponents. However, the power of GGG will finally force him to be stopped on his feet somewhere in the midst of the contest, being weakened by murderous body shots.”

Anson Wainwright (Golovkin KO5): “Call me crazy but I see this as potentially dangerous for Golovkin, Rubio can punch and GGG is hittable. Rubio isn't hard to find, though. I expect Golovkin to hurt him early and then press the action getting the stoppage in the mid-rounds.”

Jake Donovan is the Managing Editor of BoxingScene.com, as well as a member of Transnational Boxing Ratings Board and the Boxing Writers Association of America. Twitter: @JakeNDaBox