AFTER dismantling Rocky Fielding at Madison Square Garden in New York, Mexican superstar Canelo Alvarez has a belt in a new weight class, the WBAโs 168lbs โregularโ title to go with the WBA and WBA middleweight world championships he already holds.
Alvarez now feels capable of continuing to compete in either weight class. โHe showed not only his patience, his great body work but he showed he can hang in there with the big boys at 168lbs,โ promoter Oscar De La Hoya said. โI didnโt promote this fight as the toughest for Canelo but it wasnโt the easiest. Just because of the weight difference and moving up in weight and all that.โ
Already Canelo does have a date and a venue for his next fight. Heโll box on May 4 2019 at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas. But his team are keeping their options open as to whom he might fight. โSo weโve already set aside the T-Mobile for the weekend of Cinco de Mayo in Las Vegas. We have no opponent whatsoever, zero, weโre not even thinking about anybody. Weโre going to enjoy the holidays, weโre going to enjoy being with our families and then as a team collectively we are going to choose who Canelo is going to fight, whether itโs at 168 or 160lbs. So he has many choices right now as we speak,โ De La Hoya said.
โHe just came off this fight, weโre going to enjoy this moment. Whether itโs at 168lbs or 160lbs there are plenty of challenges out there for Canelo.โ
“Canelo has a target on his back. Everybody wants to fight him, everybody wants to challenge him,โ De La Hoya adds. โThereโs so many challenges out there for him.โ
The promoter though insists that Alvarez will resist taking easy options. โWeโre going to go after the top guys. Canelo has been fighting the top guys. Who fights [Gennady] Golovkin back to back? Canelo has proven over and over that Canelo wants to fight the very best. Thereโs no doubt it. Weโre just not saying now who heโs going to fight but fighting at 168lbs has opened the doors to new possibilities, to new opponents. Now he can choose a pool of many, many fighters from 160 to 168lbs. So the pool has gotten bigger,โ De La Hoya says, adding, โHe looks solid at 168lbs, he looks comfortable. Iโm still a little wary of facing him with the top, top guys at 168lbs because you never know [but] he looked very comfortable in there.
โWe work with every promoter in the world. We work with anybody to make the best fights happen. Last year we worked with Bob Arum, we made Linares versus Lomachenko and we lost and so be it. But it was great fight. We worked with other promoters, we work with Eddie Hearn. We work with anybody and thatโs not going to change. We are going to bring you the best fights.โ
There are plans for Alvarez to fight three times next year, with Eric Gomez, Golden Boy Promotions president eyeing dates in September and December for Alvarez after his next fight.
There is an interest in Alvarez returning to fight in Mexico at some point. โThis is the wonderful relationship that we have with DAZN, is that we now have the liberty to fight anywhere around the globe whether itโs here in New York, all over the world, including Mexico City and Estadio Azteca. Itโs a big possibility so weโre extremely proud and happy that we can form this alliance with DAZN because theyโve allowed us to promote Canelo all over the world,โ De La Hoya said.
โHe solidified the fact that heโs a global superstar, he can fight anywhere and fill up stadiums, thanks to the fans who make everything happen.
โNow weโre back where the train belongs, on the rails to stardom, to history. The pool is huge now, at 168 or 160lbs and weโre going to challenge the very best.โ