Canelo Alvarez and Eddie Hearn have been going steady in their fighter-promoter relationship ever since the boxing superstar freed himself from his Golden Boy Promotions contract in November.
Although Alvarez has since obtained his own promotional license, the sport’s top pound-for-pound pugilist is open to the idea of forming a power pairing and moving forward with the Matchroom Boxing impresario.
“The idea is to continue to work with Eddie Hearn for a very long time. He is the best promoter in the world, by far,” said Alvarez to TV Azteca, per a translation posted on Supreme Boxing. “I love working with him because he is a promoter who cares about even the little details, which makes everything much better. He never has a problem with his fighters and he listens to the wishes of his fighters. It is great to finally work with this type of promoter. It is true we signed a two-fight deal, for February and May [vs. Avni Yildirim and Billy Joe Saunders]. I like this way of working, and Eddie is happy to continue with this too [to work on one and two-flight deals].”
Alvarez (55-1-2, 37 KOs) ended his decade-long relationship with Oscar De La Hoya and promptly aligned forces with Hearn in December when he solidified his seat at super middleweight and beat the Matchroom-promoted Callum Smith for the Brit’s WBA and Ring Magazine titles, as well as the vacant 168-pound strap.
Although Yildirim did not have previous ties to Matchroom or DAZN during the fierce February beatdown, Hearn and Alvarez agreed to a two-fight deal before the bout that would ultimately lead the Mexican fighter to a date with the Hearn-promoted Saunders on May 8.
“We have already asked [Hearn] to lead the negotiations for our September fight, possibly against [Caleb] Plant, and he has started the talks with their team,” said Alvarez.
Plant is tied with PBC as well as FOX and Showtime networks, so it remains to be seen what platform that potential matchup will be finalized on for the 30-year-old Alvarez.
Alvarez also reiterated his plans to fight for a fifth time in a 12-month stretch by the time the year is finished — all while his stablemates get in on some potential action with Hearn at the helm.
“We have discussed the idea of fighting in December too, and in May 2022. Yes, the idea [Reynoso and I] have is to keep working with Eddie for my fights and also with the other fighters on our [Canelo Team — such as Julio Cesar Martinez and Hiroto Kyoguchi] for many years.”
Manouk Akopyan is a sports journalist, writer and broadcast reporter. He’s also a member of the Boxing Writers Association of America and MMA Journalists Association. He can be reached on Twitter, Instagram, LinkedIn and YouTube at @ManoukAkopyan, via email at manouk[dot]akopyan[at]gmail.com or on www.ManoukAkopyan.com