Canelo: “Golovkin has to prepare for me, I don’t have to prepare for him!”

Boxingnews24.com

By Dan Ambrose: Saul “Canelo” Alvarez (48-1-1, 34 KOs) seemed a bit over sensitive earlier on Wednesday when he was asked at a media workout in San Diego, California about whether he’s getting ready for a with middleweight champion Gennady “GGG” Golovkin for later on this year. It was a harmless question asked of Canelo, but he took it in a negative way by saying GGG is the one that needs to be considered with getting ready.

(Photo Credit: Tom Hogan – Hogan Photos/Golden Boy Promotion)

Canelo then made a point to say he doesn’t care what fight comes next after his May 6 fight against Julio Cesar Chavez Jr. (50-2-1, 32 KOs). Canelo didn’t seem to handle the question well. He should have been able to effortlessly tell the boxing fans that yes, he is using the Chavez Jr. fight to get ready for the Golovkin match in September, and that he’s looking forward to that fight very much. Canelo didn’t do that. He across as irritable, as if it was a negative that he would be asked about Golovkin when he’s trying to hype his fight with the 30-year-old Chavez Jr. on HBO PPV.

“It’s probably going to go down as the biggest fight in Mexican history,” said Canelo about his fight with Chavez Jr. “I’m not talking about any other fight. I’m thinking about this fight. I’m getting ready. He should worry about getting ready, not me,” said Canelo about Gennady Golovkin. “I’m getting ready for this fight. Whatever fight comes next, I don’t care.”

If Canelo doesn’t really care who he faces next, then I guess that means that Golovkin probably won’t be next in line for him in September. Canelo’s promoter Oscar De La Hoya said today that he’s interested in facing GGG in September. If that’s not the case, then De La Hoya should look in another direction towards someone talented. De La Hoya says that Canelo is going to dominate the 160lb division now. If he’s not going to fight Golovkin, because he’s saying “I don’t care,” then De La Hoya needs to match him against another good fighter like Jermall Charlo or Daniel Jacobs.

If the idea is for Canelo to fight the best at 160 and not the lesser fighters, then he’s going to need to fight Jacobs and Charlo as soon as possible. It’s going to look strange to the boxing fans if Canelo doesn’t fight Golovkin, Charlo or Jacobs. Who does that leave? It leaves Billy Joe Saunders. You can argue that Saunders is the equivalent of Liam Smith, but the middleweight division’s version.
“I hope so,” said Canelo when told by the media about the latest Chavez Jr. news of him being in great shape. “I’m ready for anything. I’m a very strong fighter as well. I’m ready for anything.”

Chavez Jr. is going to be in good shape for the fight. De La Hoya says that Chavez Jr. is already at the weight basically for the fight. He can drain down to 164.5lbs easily to make the catch-weight limit.

“It makes me feel ready good,” said Canelo about him being heavier for the Chavez Jr. fight. “I see how it drains me [Canelo having to drain down to 154-155]. Being at this weight, I feel more powerful. It’s been personal from the beginning,” said Canelo about his rivalry with Chavez Jr. “It’s been personal for years. I feel good, strong, fast, without losing speed. I’ve been sparring light heavyweights and super middleweights. I’ve felt good even though I have to move up in weight, but I also have to come down too, because I’m above the weight I feel good. It won’t be a factor in the fight. I feel good and I’m a strong fighter and a good fighter, then I can adapt to anything,” said Canelo.

Obviously, Canelo hasn’t been sparring with fighters as good as Chavez Jr. He’s doing well against the light heavyweight and super middleweight sparring partners, but that doesn’t mean he’s going to be able to do well against Chavez Jr. on May 6 when the two of them step foot inside. It’s going to be a lot harder for Canelo than his sparring sessions against mediocre fighters. Chavez Jr. has been an inactive fighter at times during the last 5 years but he might be able to turn it back on to become the fighter that he was in the past by training hard for the fight.

“It’s a risk for me to move up in weight,” said Canelo. “I’m more comfortable and stronger because I don’t have the pressure in moving down in weight to lose so much weight. I don’t know how I’ll feel the night of the fight. I’m going to go in the ring, show my work we have been doing. I don’t think he learned anything from his dad. I don’t believe talking a lot leads to anything good. Words don’t mean anything. Actions are what matters. I have a lot of experience in this. I’m going to come out and do my work like I’ve always done. This [fight] is very big in Mexico. We are talking about a fight with two Mexicans. We are getting the attention of the world in boxing. I’m proud of bringing this fight to the people to leave a mark in history. I’m not worried. I’m a fighter that can adapt to anything. I want to keep making history. I want to leave history in boxing,” said Canelo.

Canelo needs to forget about “making history.” When you start thinking of how boxing fans are going to view you’re career in the distant future, I think it’s a waste of energy. Canelo needs to forget about how future generations of boxing fans are going to measure his talent compared to the other fighters. If Canelo is really concerned about making history in boxing, then he needs to abruptly change how he’s being matched by his promoters at Golden Boy and start facing the better opposition.

You don’t make history by taking safe fights that you had almost no chance of losing against guys like Liam Smith, Alfredo Angulo, Amir Khan, James Kirkland and Miguel Cotto. You can now add Chavez Jr’s name to that list. Simply put, Canelo needs to upgrade the opposition he’s facing because he’s dining on too many soft fighters and not facing the actual belt. Canelo is also still fighting at catch-weights. The boxing greats of the past fought better opposition than Canelo on a more consistent basis, and they didn’t try and get an advantage over their opponents by fighting frequently at catch-weights.

“The name of his dad has helped him a lot. I think he opened a lot of doors for him,” said Canelo about Chavez Sr. “He hasn’t taken advantage of that in many aspects of his career. He’s had many ups and downs, because he’s not disciplined. I laugh at the stuff he says and the declarations he makes. I don’t care. He’s the last one that should be talking. I’ve worked hard physically because I don’t have to drain weight. When I used to cut weight, my power would go away,” said Canelo.

Chavez Jr. hasn’t take advantage of the doors that have been opened for him by his dad. He clearly could have gone a lot more with his boxing career in the last five years. However, you can say the same thing about Canelo not taking advantage of the popularity that he received from fighting Floyd Mayweather Jr. in 2013. Canelo has been taking it easy with the exception of his fight with Erislandy Lara in 2014.