EXPECT Canelo Alvarez to return this year. Golden Boy Promotions plan to bring him back on December 15 at Madison Square Garden in New York, as Robert Diaz, the matchmaker for Golden Boy, told Behind the Gloves.
Alvarez has only just fought, beating Gennady Golovkin to win the WBC and WBA middleweight world titles on September 15 by majority decision. That was a thrilling, close fought encounter after their controversial draw last year. While a third fight with “GGG” would be one of the most appealing bouts that could be made in boxing today, it’s unlikely it could be set for as soon as December.
The other world titles in the division are being contested in October and so 2018 could also be too soon for Canelo to ink a unification.
The Mexican however remains one of the biggest stars in the sport and has an array of options for a defence of his titles, with David Lemieux a possible contender. The Canadian knocked out Gary O’Sullivan on the undercard of Canelo’s last fight and is a promotional stablemate with Golden Boy.
That rematch with Golovkin was Alvarez’s first fight of 2018. In February Canelo failed a drug test for traces of clenbuterol, he served out a mere six month ban before he was back in action.
The final decision on his comeback will rest with the Mexican and it will be intriguing to see which television broadcaster will screen his future fights. He had been on HBO, which announced that it would ‘pivot away’ from boxing after this year.
