On March 8, Mexican star Saul ‘Canelo’ Alvarez (42-1-1, 30 KOs) returns.
Six months after losing to Floyd Mayweather in the highest-grossing fight ever, the former junior middleweight champion will face the rugged Alfredo “El Perro” Angulo (22-3, 18 KO).
Canelo vs Angulo will be a major pay-per-view (PPV) event but many are crying “foul” over Team Alvarez’s opponent selection.
Why did Alfredo Angulo win the proverbial ‘Canelo Sweepstakes’ given Erislandy Lara’s recent victories over, both, Angulo and the highly-ranked Austin Trout? The answer is very simple: Erislandy Lara, at this moment, is too much risk for the reward for Team Alvarez.
Lara is good enough to pose a real and legitimate threat to Canelo BUT not marketable enough to sell pay-per-views (PPVs). For Team Alvarez, the monetary spolis reaped for fighting Lara simply don’t measure up to the risk of their fighter losing.
And while Angulo isn’t exactly a matinee idol himself, he’s, stylistically, more amenable to Canelo than Lara. In addition, and regardless of who wins, Canelo versus the reckless, hard-charging Angulo will likely offer more fireworks than would Canelo versus the very slippery, extremely defensive Lara.
Erislandy Lara, left, wins a convincing but tactical bout against Austin Trout in December 2013
Taking nothing away from Alfredo Angulo, he is a top-notch, action-packed fighter who would be a threat to anyone at 154 and 160 lbs due to his sheer punching power alone. However, the plodding Mexican likes to ‘throw down’ and has shown time and again to be a relatively easy target, especially for fighters like the laser-precise Alvarez.
Simply put, Angulo’s come-forward style, punching power and ability to absorb punishment make him the better, fan-friendlier choice.
And more importantly, for Team Canelo, the defensive holes that are created as a result of his aggression and ring tenacity make Angulo the safer or less-threatening choice.
So when will Canelo vs Lara happen?
Don’t expect Alvarez to fight Lara anytime soon until or unless there’s tremendous public demand for the bout or Erislandy starts showing vulnerabilities in the ring that Team Alavrez thinks it can expose.
If or when Erislandy Lara can generate a huge following or somehow pique the interest of the casual fight fan, a la Miguel Cotto and Sergio Martinez, he will certainly get a crack at Canelo and perhaps even Floyd Mayweather.
