AKIPRESS.COM - Middleweight boxing fighter from Kazakhstan Gennady Golovkin was forced into the 11th round for the first time in his career, but he scored three knockdowns and dished out a thorough beating to Martin Murray en route to a knockout victory Saturday at the Salle des Etoiles in Monte Carlo.

Golovkin retained his 160-pound title for the 13th time and scored his 19th knockout in a row as he raised his knockout percentage to 90.6.

That is second-best among active titleholders behind only heavyweight titleholder Deontay Wilder (33-0, 32 KOs), who has knocked out 97 percent of his foes but has faced far inferior opposition.

According to CompuBox statistics, Golovkin landed 292 of 816 punches (36 percent), while Murray connected on only 131 of 469 (28 percent).

Golovkin, who would like to fight four times this year -- a busy schedule for an elite fighter -- is scheduled in for a return on May 16 in the United States, possibly in Southern California or San Antonio, according to ESPN. 

In addition to Golovkin's alphabet 160-pound world title, he also owns an organization's interim belt.