Do stories about Golovkin remind you guys of boxing "folk lore"?

I think that he provides a useful frame for comparison in many ways.

Not to say what he will become, but these are the sort of things that people were probably seeing, in some of the all-time greats.

 

Some similarity but they don't seem quite as overheated, imo. Most of the stories are just "he hits very, very hard and people don't like being hit by him." Stuff that we already know because of his ko record and the visible impact of his punches on opponents. A true equivalent to the past folklore might be if guys being interviewed were saying things like "I saw him knock out a heavyweight with a jab!" or "he hit me in my shoulder so hard that I lost three teeth!"

 

Let's see what happens when he is in a fight where he is being hit and hurt. Right now he is untested.

 

That's right,but he appears to tick all the boxes, apart from his obvious power it is his footwork and poise that impress me. Of course anyone can look as cool as say Salvador Sanchez when they are dictating a fight and not under pressure.
Problem is who can test him at 160lbs?

 

He's been tagged hard a few times and he didn't seem fazed. I think Stevens landed about the best shot on him.

 

GGG throws a high frequency of very hard, thudding shots that aren't necessarily enough to completely knock you cold, but are just the level below, and when it's time to KO you, he'll do exactly that.
- This is why he's seen as one who hits harder than heavyweights. In their mind they draw up the whole experience sparring with Golovkin.

 

I don't find many stories about punching power incredible.
Generally I think people who sit around talking about boxing have little comprehension of how hard and damaging the elite professionals can hit, nevermind the elite professionals who have a reputation for unusual power among their peers.
It's true of every sport. The armchair experts can watch and talk about the sport all day but often have no real-world idea of the skill, force and prowess of the top participants in relation to the ordinary amateurs or average men.

 

Idea is until he is really tested he does not rank with those that have been tested.

 

Being good enough to hang with him is one part of the equation, being able to take his punches is another.

 

The weird thing is that after all these "He knocked Oliver McCall out with 20 oz gloves" stories, they seem hesitant to have him move up one weight class.

 

I was with you 100% until the last word of your post.