By Adam Godfrey: As I am sure most of us suspect, it’s possible that neither Saul “Canelo” Alvarez or Oscar De La Hoya’s Golden Boy Promotions has any intention to allow the cinnamon haired Mexican to fight consensus middleweight King Gennady ‘GGG’ Golovkin at the middleweight limit of 160lb this year, despite it being mandated in the WBC rules that a catchweight cannot be enforced upon a mandatory challenger such as Golovkin.
Usually a fighter as big as Alvarez would suffer from draining down to such a light weight in contrast to his usual size, but Canelo has an uncanny ability to put on 20/25lb in a short period to significantly outweigh his opponent when it comes to laying leather on face, and to not be affected by the weight drain in the same way others would.
This ability has been milked by a degree that does not conform to what is considered a usually acceptable standard in boxing. There is also the, probably justified, suspicion that Mexican WBC president José Suláiman will change the organisation’s rules to allow Canelo to either a) force Golovkin to fight at 155lb in a unification bout, or b) continue to fight voluntary defences until he feels ready to take on Golovkin at 160lb. This would result in Canelo fighting a Golovkin who is past his prime, yet another artificial advantage for Canelo to enjoy.
The extent to which Canelo and his handlers will seek such a significant advantage is perfectly illuminated by his decision to fight welterweight Amir Khan in his voluntary defence before, supposedly, a shoo-in fight against Golovkin in September. Having not fought at 160lb before it is reasonable to assume that, if he intended to fight Golovkin in September, Alvarez would have insisted on fighting a genuine and experienced Middleweight, such as big punching former champ David Lemieux, in preparation for a much bigger test against Golovkin. One can infer from this that Canelo is unlikely to honor any agreement he currently has with Golovkin or his handlers at K2 promotions, at least not upon the weight terms that Golovkin will likely, and rightly, insist.
For the sake of balance it is important to look at this situation from Canelo’s point of view, which is essentially the businessman’s angle instead of the boxing fan’s. Canelo can rightly claim to be the A-side in the negotiations. He has an enormous fan base in Mexico, a country steeped in boxing pedigree and history. He attracts good pay-per-view numbers, although often against fighters who themselves guarantee to be a PPV draw such as Miguel Cotto and Floyd Mayweather. Regardless, Canelo will continue to pull good numbers, even against welterweight Amir Khan, who is generally considered too small to be a threat to the considerably bigger Alvarez. Therefore many would argue that as Canelo can impose his will upon proceedings thanks to his financial clout, that he should, and Golovkin has no choice but to cede to his demands. This leads to the most pertinent question of all, and the one I pose to all boxing fans with an interest in this potential fight; just because Canelo can, does this mean that he should? There is more at stake in this fight than a mere boxing match. This fight provides an opportunity for boxing to hark back to its glory days, when the best only wanted to fight the best, and pugilists reveled in taking on only those who would give them the sternest test. Boxing has emerged from the Floyd Mayweather Jr. era palpably on the back foot, threatened by the likes of UFC where fighters take on who they are told to, ostensibly against the fighter who not only poses the biggest threat to them but the one who provides the best match-up for the benefit of the fans. If this was UFC then Canelo v GGG would have already been booked for May, and if not then fans could be certain the fight would happen in September.
As such, I have to conclude that if we look at is v ought, ought wins. This is a pivotal moment, and anybody who cares about this sport and is determined to see it flourish in the future will agree that Canelo v GGG must happen this year and at the weight that the WBC’s rules currently command. If it doesn’t, then we can expect the next generation of boxers and their fans to witness catchweight after catchweight ad nauseam, where the financial A-side takes on those they know they are likely to beat, not who is going to test their skills to the greatest extent. Two of the biggest criticisms leveled at Floyd Mayweather Jr. over recent years have been that he waited for Manny Pacquiao to reach the other side of the hill before fighting him and that he cherry-picked a hugely overmatched opponent in Andre Berto for his farewell bout. The comparisons between these events and the alternatives for Canelo v GGG are stark. Boxing fans should not accept Canelo finally agreeing to fight a time weary Golovkin, nor should they be willing to accept him fighting a man who plies his trade at Welterweight, as Amir Khan does. It is not an over-exaggeration to say that the short-term future of the sport is at stake, and it relies on Canelo v GGG happening in 2016.
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