Mexican boxer Saul ‘Canelo’ Alvarez still has the door open for his activity in 2025, where there are several candidates and he could spring a surprise with some of his potential rivals. The strongest contender for now is Cuban William Scull, but Canelo seems willing to negotiate with one of the proposals of Sheikh Turki Alalshikh, president of the General Entertainment Authority of Saudi Arabia.
Canelo Alvarez went to London to receive the recognition of The Ring magazine as ‘Fighter of the Year’, where he met Turki Alalshikh, and in an interview with the hosts he acknowledged that there is a possibility of fighting Terence Crawford.
“There is always a possibility. We’ll see, we’ll see, but there’s always a possibility. We’re here to do the best business,” Canelo told The Ring when asked about his meeting with Alalshikh and the possibility of agreeing to the fight against Bud Crawford.
The obstacle to overcome for the Canelo Alvarez vs Terence Crawford fight
The WBC mandatory challenger for Saul Alvarez is David Benavidez, but with the Mexican’s reluctance to accept the challenge, he could turn to Terence Crawford for his September fight. However, the main obstacle to closing the deal is the weight difference, because Bud is in the 154 pounds, in super welterweight, which is two divisions less than Canelo.
Money would not be the biggest problem for a potential deal, negotiations would start at the $150 million that Canelo asked for, but there would be other obstacles, which was already confessed a few days ago by British promoter Eddie Hearn, head of Matchroom, in statements to Fight Hype.
“I’ll be honest, I’d be very surprised if that fight happens. I think His Excellency has been pushing that fight, it didn’t seem like it was something Canelo really wanted to do, to be honest,” Hearn told Fight Hype, after recalling a chat he had with the Mexican boxer about why he would be reluctant to accept a fight against Bud Crawford
“I think his feeling is that when he beats Crawford, everyone will say I beat a 154-pound fighter,” said Hearn, before adding that he believes: “Crawford really can’t come to fight in that fight because he’s at a huge size disadvantage.”