Canelo Alvarez Doesn’t Want To Risk Losing His Undisputed Crown To Bivol

By Boxing News - 05/03/2023 - Comments

By Vince D’Writer: Undisputed super-middleweight champion Saul “Canelo” Alvarez is set to defend his title against John Ryder (32-5, 18 KOs) in a bout in which most people view as a glorified tune-up.

Alvarez is focused on his May 6 opponent, and he also has his sights set on a rematch with the man who gave him his second career loss.

Back in May 2022, Canelo Alvarez moved up to 175 to challenge the undefeated WBA light heavyweight champion Dmitry Bivol. Canelo was attempting to become a two-time light heavyweight champion, but unfortunately for Alvarez, he came up short on points.

During the course of the 12-round WBA championship bout, Dmitry Bivol put his ring IQ and his boxing skills on display. Bivol earned the unanimous decision victory over Alvarez by being smart, disciplined, using his jab, flawless footwork, and consistently landing the one-two combination.

Alvarez was disappointed with the outcome of the fight and he vowed to face Bivol a second time. However, the rematch would have to wait as Alvarez was scheduled to take care of some unfinished business.

Four months after losing to Bivol, the undisputed super-middleweight champion was back in the ring as he won the trilogy fight versus his rival Gennadiy “GGG” Golovkin. Two months after Canelo wrapped up his trilogy, Dmitry Bivol was back in action as he successfully defended his title against the previously undefeated Gilberto “Zurdo” Ramirez.

Rumors of a rematch between Dmitry Bivol and Canelo Alvarez were circulating, but Canelo elected to take time off to tend to an injury, and then he agreed to defend his title against John Ryder. On May 6, when Canelo steps inside the squared circle to face John Ryder, it will be his first time fighting in Mexico since November 2011.

Canelo Alvarez (58-2-2, 39 KOs) plans on having a successful homecoming, and then after his bout with Ryder, Alvarez wants another shot against Bivol at 175. Bivol welcomes the opportunity in regards to facing Canelo a second time, but Bivol and his team don’t agree with the suggested contest weight.

Alvarez claims he wants the rematch at 175 because if he defeats Bivol at the super-middleweight limit of 168, then his critics wouldn’t give him credit for the victory. On the other hand, Bivol’s manager Vadim Kornilov has rejected the rematch proposal at 175 because there is no incentive for his fighter.

Dmitry Bivol (21-0, 11 KOs) had a successful title defense against Alvarez as he won the contest convincingly. With that being said, the question many fans are asking is why would a champion such as Bivol defend his title a second time against an opponent he already defeated by unanimous decision?

The WBA light heavyweight champion and his team are open to a rematch against Canelo, but they want the return match to be at 168. If the rematch is fought at 168, then that means Canelo will be defending his super-middleweight title belts.

If Bivol and his team are adamant about fighting at 168, then the rematch probably won’t happen. Most are assuming that Canelo doesn’t want the fight at 168 because he doesn’t want to risk losing his super-middleweight titles.

Vadim Kornilov feels skeptical in regards to a Bivol-Alvarez rematch due to the weight and other potential problematic issues. In addition to the contest weight, Kornilov believes financial terms, the location of the fight, and the selection of judges are challenging issues both teams will have to face when negotiating the rematch.

Canelo claims he wants the rematch to take place at 175, so Bivol can’t make any excuses in regards to being weight drained. Alvarez wants an excuse-free rematch at 175, but during his interview with Little Giant Boxing, Vadim Kornilov spoke about the terms, excuses, and the reality of a Bivol-Alvarez rematch.

“Bivol already beat him. He’s not as motivated, and it’s not really that big of a challenge for him. So they have to meet certain terms that we’re asking for, and one of those terms is Bivol wants to fight him at 168. First of all, it’s enticing for him (Canelo) to put all of his titles on the line, and he (Bivol) doesn’t want any more excuses.”

Kornilov went on to state, “Canelo said after the last fight he went up in weight, but he’s done that before. Saying that I made a mistake the time that you lose, it doesn’t sound right because it wasn’t a mistake when you won, when you beat Kovalev, so why is it now that it’s not your weight class?”

Apparently, Canelo Alvarez went into the first fight with a prepared excuse of if he suffers defeat, it was because he went up in weight to challenge Bivol. Now that Canelo knows Bivol has the skills to beat him, he wants the rematch at 175 once again so he doesn’t risk losing his 168-pound title belts.

On Saturday, May 6, live on DAZN Pay-per-view, Canelo Alvarez will defend his undisputed super-middleweight crown against John Ryder. If Canelo defeats Ryder and he wants the rematch with Dmitry Bivol, then the bout should take place at 168. If Alvarez refuses to face Bivol at 168, then he has plenty of competition in his division as David Benavidez continues to wait for his opportunity to finally face the undisputed super-middleweight champion.