(Photo Credit: Gene Blevins – Hoganphotos/Golden Boy Promotions) By Eric Thomas: WBC junior middleweight champion Saul “Canelo” Alvarez (40-0-1, 29 KO’s) says he wants the big names after he dispatches 140 pound contender Josesito Lopez (30-4, 18 KO’s) in their fight on September 15th on Showtime at the MGM Grand, in Las Vegas, Nevada.
Alvarez said “I’d love to fight guys like Floyd Mayweather, Manny Pacquiao and Miguel Cotto, but first I have to get past Josesito.”
It’s safe to say that Alvarez can permanently scratch Pacquiao’s name off his list because that fight isn’t going to happen in this lifetime because neither his promoters at Golden Boy Promotions and Top Rank will likely ever allow that fight to happen.
It’s too bad because in the absence of a Mayweather or Cotto fight for Alvarez, Pacquiao would be a good substitute. It’s still something that couldn’t happen because of Pacquiao’s need for catchweights for a fight like that to happen. Alvarez can barely make 154 lbs, and it would be asking way too much of him to have to strip down another four pounds to make that fight happen.
After Alvarez destroys the undersized Lopez next month he’ll be free to target Cotto and Mayweather for fights. I don’t know if Mayweather will be open to a fight against Alvarez at this time, because he still won’t be a legitimate pay per view star despite having fought on some of the recent undercards.
Going from an undercard fighter to a main event guy on a PPV fight card is a big jump and I just don’t see it drawing the kind of money that would interest Mayweather right now. It wouldn’t be fair to Alvarez if he fought Mayweather just now, because Golden Boy Promotions have spoon feeding Alvarez for so long that it would be too much of a step up for him if he were thrown in with Mayweather right now.
Alvarez has been matched against a lot of smaller guys and shot fighters. Putting him in with someone not totally faded and small would be a disaster. Golden Boy needs to start matching Alvarez against guys that can actually fight and who are legitimate junior middleweights before they put him in with Mayweather. Alvarez needs to earn the shot against Mayweather by proving he can beat Erislandy Lara and Vanes Martirosyan.
If he can get past those two, then I can see a fight between Mayweather and Alvarez being a good fight. But until then, I don’t think it’s a good idea. Golden Boy isn’t even matching Alvarez against junior middleweight in this fight against Lopez. They’ve picked out a skinny light welterweight for him to fight. Do they honestly want to have Alvarez go from this fight against Alvarez to a bout against Mayweather? That would be wrong.
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