By Dan Ambrose: Former WBC lightweight champion Humberto Soto (56-7-2, 33 KO’s) is hoping to get a title shot against WBA light welterweight champion Marcos Maidana (31-2, 28 KO’s) in December. However, Maidana isn’t committed to making that fight with Soto in December. Maidana wants a big money fight or at least one that pays good.

Soto isn’t the big name that Maidana is looking for. Maidana wants a rematch with Erik Morales, who Maidana defeated last April by a 12 round decision. However, Morales is now the WBC welterweight champion and is looking for a soft touch in his first defense of his title in December. Maidana isn’t in Morales’ plans for December. This leaves Soto or whoever else can be dug up for Maidana to fight if he doesn’t want to fight the 31-year-old Soto.

Soto, wanting to get bigger paydays, vacated his World Boxing Council lightweight belt recently and moved up to the light welterweight division. In his first fight, Soto took on Jose Alfaro, another lightweight, and beat him by a 2nd round TKO. Why Soto chose to fight a lightweight instead of a light welterweight is a good question. It seemed like a backwards self defeating move for Soto to waste the fight with Alfaro. If the objective is to get ready for good light welterweights, why did Soto waste a fight against a pumped up lightweight? Whatever the case, the WBA has responded well to Soto moving up in rankings and even though he fought a lightweight in his first fight at the new weight, Soto is now the number #1 contender.

Soto isn’t Maidana’s mandatory challenger. Paul McCloskey holds that distinction with his controversial 12 round decision win over Breidis Prescott. McCloskey will likely be Maidana’s next opponent unless a bigger name can be found.