After beating Miguel Cotto (40-5-0, 33 KOs) for the WBC, The Ring, and lineal middleweight titles on Nov. 21, speculations about Saul "Canelo" Alvarez's (46-1-1, 32 KOs) next possible opponents are starting to circulate online.
Reports after his latest victory claimed that Alvarez will take over the schedule that Floyd Mayweather left vacant upon his retirement. This means that his next fights will be scheduled around May and September next year.
Alvarez's promoter Oscar Dela Hoya confirmed the schedule of his next fight through a Twitter post shared by LA Times reporter Lance Pugmire.
While his fight schedules are already set, his camp must now look for his next opponents in his upcoming bouts. Two of the most talked about fighters that Alvarez could possibly face next year include former eight-division world champion Manny Pacquiao and the current WBA, IBF, WBC and IBO middleweight champion Gennady Golovkin.
According to BoxingNews24, Pacquiao's name was brought up by Pugmire prior to his fight with Cotto. According to the report, Pugmire told Alvarez that Top Rank promoter Bob Arum suggested that the Filipino boxing champion could be his next opponent . Alvarez reportedly welcomed the suggestion, saying: "Yes, of course, it's a fight [Canelo vs. Pacquiao] that could happen in the future, but right now my focus is on Miguel Cotto 100 percent and nobody else. I am not thinking about the future."
Meanwhile, Alvarez needs to decide soon if he is ready to face the Kazakhstani boxer Golovkin to keep his WBC middleweight title.
However, the camps of Alvarez and Golovkin must compromise the right weight for their bout.
According to Alvarez's trainer Eddy Reynoso, they are more comfortable at the 155-pound limit. "We are not inventing a new division; it's just part of the business and everyone looks for what suits them, and whoever wants to fight with Saul will have to come down or go up," Reynoso told ESPN Deportes. Meanwhile, Golovkin's camp wants to set the fight at the full 160-pound limit.
