CANELO ALVAREZ has declined to challenge for the world title he used to hold. If he defeats Gennady Golovkin on September 16, when the two fight at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas, he will leave the WBC middleweight title, now held by Golovkin, vacant but claim the Kazakh’s IBF and WBA crowns.
“I am very proud to be fighting for these important titles in this fight,” Canelo said. “This will be the best boxing event of the year, and I know all of the fans from Mexico and beyond will come out and enjoy the fight as I defend my Lineal and ‘Ring Magazine’ titles, and take home the WBA and IBF championships.”
Canelo Alvarez was seen as the ‘lineal’ champion in 2015 after he beat Miguel Cotto for the WBC middleweight title. Cotto was the man who had toppled Sergio Martinez who was the number one in the division.
Canelo would defend the WBC belt, at a catchweight against Amir Khan in 2016.
But Canelo’s disagreement with the WBC emerged in May last year. The WBC mandated that Alvarez should fight Golovkin only for Canelo to vacate the belt. At the time he insisted, “I will fight ‘GGG,’ and I will beat ‘GGG’ but I will not be forced into the ring by artificial deadlines.”
Canelo moved back down to super-welterweight to win the WBO 154lbs title from Liam Smith, moving out of the middleweight rankings and leaving Golovkin as the number one at 160lbs.
After picking up their then vacant belt last year, when he was already an ‘Interim’ titlist, Golovkin is not distancing himself from the WBC, and is certainly not going to abandon their world title. He will be carrying it to the ring and hopes to leave with it.
“’GGG’ will be proudly defending all of his titles – WBC, WBA, IBF, and IBO – as well as looking to add the ‘Ring magazine’ title to his collection when he steps into the ring against Canelo,” said Tom Loeffler, Golovkin’s promoter. “Fans love this matchup. It’s not only the two best fighters in their division fighting each other in their prime, but also two of the most marketable fighters in the sport.”
