The boxing world will shift its focus to the main event tilt between Miguel Cotto and Saul "Canelo" Alvarez scheduled for this Saturday, although there are already rumblings about what could happen after the fight.
According to sports writer Lance Pugmire, and subsequently reported on by Boxing News 24, at least one possibility is that the next time Alvarez steps into the ring, he might see Manny Pacquiao at the other side of it.
Pugmire says that it was Top Rank promoter Bob Arum himself who suggested that Alvarez is at least one of the next possible opponents for Pacquiao, although it is seemingly not set in stone.
Aside from Alvarez, other fighters who could end up in the ring with Pacquiao for his next fight include Tim Bradley and Amir Khan, among others.
Another potential stumbling block to a Pacquiao-Alvarez fight is the fact that the latter could still end up on the losing side of his Saturday bout with Cotto. Even though a Pacquiao-Alvarez fight could still happen even with the latter's loss, a bigger money fight would most likely be in the cards if he comes out with a win.
Pacquiao would also seemingly have some rooting interest in seeing Alvarez win, seeing as how the two have never fought before, and that it could also be the biggest money bout he can land.
As for what other fights might happen if a Pacquiao–Alvarez bout falls through, one name that has been mentioned as a possible opponent for both Cotto and Alvarez is that of Gennady Golovkin.
The World Boxing Council (WBC) has reportedly mandated the winner of Saturday's fight to step into the ring with Golovkin next, although this too is not guaranteed, according to Bleacher Report.
Cotto has indicated that he does not want to fight Golovkin, while a weight issue is threatening to derail any Alvarez–Golovkin bout before it can even be booked.
