Canelo to decide next opponent in January, Golovkin, Charlo & Beterbiev options

By Boxing News - 11/07/2021 - Comments

By Jeff Aronow: Canelo Alvarez revealed that he’s going to meet with his trainer Eddy Reynoso next January to discuss who he should fight next when he returns to the ring in May 2022 following his eleventh round knockout win over Caleb Plant last Saturday night.

Alvarez says he’ll decide his next opponent will be in January, and then return to the ring in May 2022.

There’s a lot of speculation that Canelo’s next opponent will be chosen from this group of fighters:

  • Gennadiy Golovkin
  • Jermall Charlo
  • Artur Beterbiev
  • Dmitry Bivol
  • David Benavidez
  • John Ryder

Of those names, Ryder would seem to be out of place, as he’s not considered talented. However, promoter Eddie Hearn of Matchroom Boxing repeatedly reminded the mean on Friday that Ryder is Canelo’s WBA mandatory challenger at 168, and a fight between them would do well if it were staged in the UK in early 2022.

Canelo to decide next opponent in January

“We are always looking for the best fights and defending the titles is always important,” said Canelo to the Metro in hinting that he may choose to keep his four super middleweight titles and defend them against challengers.

“When the time comes we will think about the future. Maybe in January, we will see what is next. I have nothing in particular in mind right now. I’m ready for any challenge, but we will see what comes next year,” said Canelo.

Image: Canelo to decide next opponent in January, Golovkin, Charlo & Beterbiev options

If Canelo wants to make the most money possible for his next fight, a fight with either unbeaten WBC middleweight champion Jermall Charlo (32-0, 22 KOs) or a trilogy match with IBF 160-lb champion Gennadiy Golovkin (41-1-1, 36 KOs) would be the way to go.

It’s not believed that Canelo will agree to fight unbeaten former two-time WBC super middleweight champion David Benavidez because he’s probably the toughest of the guys at 168 that he could face right now.

However, if Canelo doesn’t fight Benavidez soon, he’ll lose whatever chance he has of beating him because he’ll be too old.

The 31-year-old Canelo (57-1-2, 39 KOs) knocked IBF super middleweight champion Plant (21-1, 12 KOs) down two times in the 11th round to get the knockout victory to become the first undisputed champion in the history of the 168-lb division.

Fighting in front of 16,586 fans at the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas in the main event on SHOWTIME PPV, Canelo took his time figuring out the highly skilled Plant’s style, and by the second half of the contest, he figured him out.

From that point until the 11th, Canelo punished Plant with heavy shots. Plant had his moments, but he didn’t possess enough power on his punches for him to inflict damage.

Josh Taylor: “Welcome to the [undisputed] club, Canelo”

“I didn’t think he would get the knockout. I thought it would be points, but I thought he was well ahead on points,” said Josh Taylor to iFL TV on Canelo.

“Caleb Plant, his counter punching wasn’t having any effect on Canelo at all, being at ringside. It was a beat down, he wore him down. I gave Plant three rounds. He was throwing a lot of nice combinations, but they were really ineffective.

Image: Canelo to decide next opponent in January, Golovkin, Charlo & Beterbiev options

“Welcome to the club, Canelo,” said Taylor on Canelo joining him in becoming an undisputed champion.

“He gave him a hard time with that side angle position,” said former welterweight champion Andre Berto to iFL TV about Caleb Plant. “Caleb did a great job.

“Towards the end, Canelo wanted to be in that position. He almost got frustrated to the point where he looked like he was trying to bully him through. Like I said, he’s got a lot of experience.

“Caleb said in the press conferences that he’s not there for a check, and you saw that tonight. He showed up. Caleb is sharp, he was point. I think he probably should have sat down on some of his punches to try and gain a little more respect.

“Besides that, great defense, great boxing skills, he’ll be back,” Berto said of Plant. “I want to see [Jermall] Charlo – Canelo, that’s going to be big. Definitely, I think he’s [Canelo] pound-for-pound the best right now.

“Right now, he’s [Canelo] a bull, he has great confidence, great experience and he comes up and shows up every time,” said Berto of Canelo.