Promoter Eddie Hearn was wearing his campaign hat on Thursday in pushing hard for Canelo Alvarez to agree to his two-fight deal to take on WBA light heavyweight champion Dmitry Bivol (19-0, 11 KOs) and then Gennadiy Golovkin in September.
Those are two fighters that Hearn has in his stable that would attract a lot of fan interest, and the fights would further Cnaleo’s goal of becoming the undisputed 175-lb champion.
Bivol would be a difficult fight for Canelo, and he might not be up for the task. Hearn’s competition is from PBC, who will be looking to put a fight together between Canelo and Jermall Charlo.
Hearn wants Canelo to fight Bivol
“I just think he wants to fight the best and he wants to challenge himself. The Bivol fight is a very tough fight,” said Eddie Hearn to Fighthype.
“I know the perception of Canelo is he’s unbeatable and he might be, but Bivol is a tall, rangy, solid, very technical fighter, who can punch. He’s got great footwork, he’s unbeaten and he’s young and fresh.
“If you’re going to dispute Canelo’s resume, you can look at Sergey Kovalev. Yeah, he was at the backend of his career. Bivol is in his absolute prime.
“He beat Joe Smith easily, and he’s been searching for this big opportunity. That’s a very dangerous fight. He’s [Canelo] one of those people who never look for an easy way out because it doesn’t motivate him.
“The easy payday [isn’t want Canelo wants]. He wants a challenge. So he’s quite unique. Even Eddy, it’s like, ‘What’s the toughest fight?’ Beterbiev, I’ve spoken to him about that fight. He loves that fight.
“That is a brutal, brutal fight. He can fight anyone he wants at any time. He doesn’t need a path, but at the same time, it’s nice to have a plan.
“When I sat down with him to talk to him about becoming undisputed at 168, we said, ‘Callum Smith, Billy Joe Saunders, and Caleb Plant. It happened within a year.
“That’s the most incredible thing. To do that without a year, to beat all the champions within a year. People talk about the inactivity of great fighters. He’s a guy that has gone the other way.
“He’s become more active during the pandemic. The Bivol fight and the Charlo fight are a lot alike. I think the GGG fight is the hugest fight out there, and he [Canelo] wants the biggest fights out there.
“Bivol and Charlo too. Charlo, I personally think the Charlo fight is the easier fight because of the size. But at the same time, Charlo is a good fighter as well,” said Hearn.
It would surprise a lot of boxing fans if Canelo chooses to fight Bivol and Golovkin in 2022. For starters, Bivol is a lot better than the fighters Canelo has fought since 2018.
Secondly, Canelo probably isn’t going to agree to a deal that would require him to fight GGG in the second fight.
People question Canelo’s resume
“We’re working really hard to try and be a part of his future,” said Hearn about Canelo. “I have a great relationship with Canelo and Eddy Reynoso.
“We’re friends but it doesn’t mean that he’s going to take a fight with us just because we get on well. He’s very selective about his career and what he does.
“For Canelo, it’s all about the challenge. He’s got all the money in the world, and he’s got all the belts in the world. At that stage of your career, what are you looking for? It’s not about money it’s about challenges.
“If you look at what Canelo has done against the champions. It’s bizarre that people would even question his resume. I had this agreement with someone recently.
“Let’s just rewind his resume from Danny Jacobs, who was the world middleweight champion. That was a unification fight. Even going back to the two Gennadiy Golovkin fights.
“Canelo moves up two divisions to fight Sergey Kovalev, knocks him out. Then he wants to be undisputed at 168. He beats Callum Smith, #1 in the division, the Ring Magazine champion. Has to have a run-out against [Avni] Yildirim, his [WBC] mandatory. There was nothing he could do.
“Fights another champion in Billy Joe Saunders, and then fights another champion in Caleb Plant to become undisputed. Now he’s looking at Charlo, who is a world middleweight champion,” said Hearn.
Canelo’s resume isn’t as strong as Hearn says it is. The super middleweights that Canelo beat last year at super middleweight were regular contender-level fighters that fell into their titles by beating less than the best.
Canelo’s resume in the last six years:
- Caleb Plant
- Billy Joe Saunders
- Avni Yildirim
- Callum Smith
- Sergey Kovalev
- Danny Jacobs
- Gennady Golovkin
- Liam Smith
- Julio Cesar Chavez Jr
- Amir Khan
Hearn can deliver Bivol & Golovkin
“Bivol, who is at light heavyweight, an undefeated world champion. Gennadiy Golovkin. This guy [Canelo] is incredible with the consecutive fights he’s having against champions,” Hearn said.
“My side, everybody proposes fights they can deliver, The two that I can deliver with DZAN is Bivol and GGG. I like the idea of Canelo trying to beat the light heavyweights. Joe Smith, Beterbiev, Bivol.
“He can become undisputed at 175 as well,” said Hearn about Canelo. “That would be incredible. For me, two of the best fights is the GGG fights. So the trilogy for the undisputed at 168 is another huge fight.
“It really comes down to Canelo and Eddy. They just look at the options and go ‘We like that challenge,’ and we pray that challenge is with us.
“Golovkin is contracted to fight Murata. Don’t forget that Gennadiy hasn’t boxed in over a year.
“That’s not his fault. It’s the pandemic in Japan, but he’s going to want to get that fight in before he jumps back in with Canelo Alvarez in my opinion. So the route would likely be Bivol and GGG,” said Hearn.
The timing of Hearn offering his two-fight deal to Canelo and Reynoso isn’t a good one. They appear to be more intrigued with the idea of facing Jermall Charlo, and if they can get a huge guaranteed offer from PBC, it’s going to be a wrap.
Reynoso likes the 2-fight option from Hearn
“I’ve talked in-depth about that, yeah,” said Hearn about him speaking with Canelo and Reynoso about them accepting his two-fight deal to face Bivol in May and Golovkin in September.
“I think they like it. There two great fights. He knows that everyone in the world wants to see the GGG trilogy because it’s a great fight. And he likes the idea of moving up and facing other champions.
“I’m sure he likes the Charlo fight and I’m sure he likes other fights out there. I think that’s another fight for later in the year. I don’t know,” said Hearn about Canelo fighting WBC cruiserweight champion Ilunga Makabu.
“I think he just wants to fight the beat and challenge himself,” said Hearn.
It sounds promising that Eddy Reynoso likes the idea of accepting Hearn’s two-fight idea for Canelo to fight Bivol in May and Golovkin in September.
But we’ll have to see if Reynoso goes through with the deal because Canelo can always nix the plan if he gets cold feet. Even great fighters are sometimes hesitant to take on risky opposition, and Canelo is proof of that.
