Yesterday, Lineal and Ring Magazine middleweight champion Saul Canelo Alvarez decided to vacate the WBC belt he just defended in devastating fashion against Amir Khan to strengthen his chances of securing a fight against Gennady Golovkin. The fighter and his promoter issued a statement confirming the matter.
After much consideration, today, I instructed my team at Golden Boy Promotions to continue negotiating a fight with Gennady GGG Golovkin and to finalize a deal as quickly as possible, Alvarez said in a released statement. “I also informed the WBC that I will vacate its title. For the entirety of my career, I have taken the fights that no one wanted because I fear no man.”
“Never has that been more true than today,” he continued. “I will fight GGG, and I will beat GGG, but I will not be forced into the ring by artificial deadlines. I am hopeful that by putting aside this ticking clock, the two teams can now negotiate this fight, and GGG and I can get in the ring as soon as possible and give the fans the fight they want to see.”
The WBC has a 15-day deadline to get a unification fight done with mandatory challenger Gennady Golovkin and as it draws near, Alvarez and promoter Golden Boy felt it necessary to bargain without a deadline looming over their heads.
With Canelo vacating the belt, Golovkin, who was the interim WBC champion, sheds the interim title and is now the WBC middleweight champion.
There is no denying that Canelo is the biggest star in the sport of boxing, said Chairman and CEO of Golden Boy Promotions, Oscar De La Hoya in the statement. He is eager to get in the ring with GGG to show the world that he is also the best pound for pound fighter in the sport, but we wont negotiate under a forced deadline. Now that the WBC title is off the table, I am hopeful that GGG and his promoter K2 Promotions will come to the table in good faith and get this deal done.”
The world clamors for this match-up and boxing is notorious for making us wait for the biggest matchups when the figheters are past their primes.
Recently Yahoo Sports’ Kevin Iole told us that he feels the fight will happen eventually, but is not confident that it will be Canelos next fight, hinting at a possible rematch with Miguel Cotto.
