WBC light middleweight champion Saul ‘Canelo’ Alvarez (36-0-1, 26KOs) is a fighter many have tipped to become the next big star in the sport, and as such the 20 year old, speaking to the press during his media day yesterday in Los Angeles, has set himself some very lofty goals.
When asked what he wanted to achieve in the sport and what his plans for the future were, Alvarez answers included eclipsing the monumental achievements of Oscar De La Hoya and being on the same level as current pound for pound king Manny Pacquiao by this time next year.
Speaking to the press during his media workout in Los Angeles, Alvarez said:
“I consider it an honor to be compared to the ‘Golden Boy’ but I obviously have my mind set to accomplish much more. Records are made to be broken and that is my goal.
“My goal is to be the best fighter. To be the best, you have to challenge the best, and I think I could be ready for Pacquiao in a year.”
Before he can begin thinking about taking on the best fighters in the sport today and winning titles at multiple weights however he must first get past British veteran Ryan Rhodes (45-4, 31KOs) next weekend.
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A definite step up in competition from his recent run of undersized opponents such as Matthew Hatton or Lovemore N’dou, but still a long way from the likes of Manny Pacquiao or even Alvarez’s fellow light middleweight world titlists for that matter.
Ryan Rhodes for those not familiar with his resume has held the British, European and WBC International light middleweight titles in the past, and fought much of his career at middleweight. He also has experience in spades, decent power, and will likely be able to take anything Alvarez can dish out.
As difficult as he might appear to be for Alvarez on paper however he is also slowing down at 34 years of age, and has a history of coming up short when it matters having lost in both of his previous bids for world titles and twice more chasing minor titles.
To go from Rhodes to Pacquiao in a year however would take huge improvements from Alvarez in each of his successive next fights, not to mention upping his caliber of opponent each time, a risk that neither the WBC or Golden Boy are likely to be that keen on taking. Advertisement
Whether he will get much better than he already is will remain to be seen, although Rhodes is a step in the right direction, a fighter that he won’t have a big size advantage over and who at his best was probably only slightly below world level.
Certainly as good as Canelo is at 20 years old, it isn’t out of the realms of possibility that he could one day become the great fighter that Golden Boy are hoping for. Whether it will take one year or more likely five or six is another matter.
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From what we have seen of Alvarez so far pairing him with Pacquiao would result in little more than a massacre, with the hittable and at times still stiff looking Alvarez being extremely unlikely to be able to deal with Pacquiao’s whirlwind offense.
In the end though, whether Alvarez is ready for the likes of Pacquiao in a year or not, the fact that he is promoted by Golden Boy while Pacquiao is signed to Top Rank will likely keep them apart permanently anyway.
Although both Bob Arum and Richard Schaefer have toned down their bickering in the press of late and successfully negotiated the transfer of Juan Manuel Marquez last month, the two sides remain a long way away from co-promoting a major card featuring two genuine draws such as Pacquiao and Canelo.
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