Saul "Canelo" Alvarez is continuously being linked to a showdown with middleweight champion Gennady Golovkin. But as it appears, the Alvarez-Golovkin fight is not close to happening, fueling speculation Canelo will face Manny Pacquiao in a super fight later this year.
Alvarez and his camp were ordered to pay $8.5 million to All Star Boxing, who claimed that Canelo violated the terms of his previous contract with the company. Because of the hefty penalty, Golden Boy Promotions is looking for the best possible fight for Canelo, where he can earn a hefty paycheck.
Among the possible fights that were mentioned in recent talks is a showdown between Alvarez and Pacquiao, BoxingScene reported. The Pacquiao-Canelo showdown will be an instant hit, considering the fan base of both fighters. However, Top Rank Promotions CEO Bob Arum quickly turned down the possibility.
Arum said that while the Manny Pacquiao vs Canelo Alvarez fight will be a box office showdown, Golden Boy Promotions have not reached out to him about the bout. In fact, Arum revealed that Alvarez has already selected an opponent for his next fight -- World Boxing Organization super welterweight champion Liam Smith.
"Nobody from Canelo's team, Oscar, or anyone connected with Oscar has approached us at all about a Canelo fight," Arum said. "As a matter of fact, I will tell you - from what I know - they already have an opponent and that is the English kid, the 154 pound champion."
It is also worth noting that Pacquiao has already announced his retirement after his unanimous decision victory over Timothy Bradley in April. The Filipino boxing icon also said that he is not thinking of fighting again, as he wants to focus on serving his countrymen. The former pound-for-pound king won a Senate seat in the Philippines.
Meanwhile, Alvarez will not face Golovkin this year as well, ESPN confirmed. Tom Loeffler, Golovkin's promoter, said that he already sat down with Golden Boy Promotions vice president Eric Gomez and agreed to postpone the fight until next year.
Golovkin and Alvarez was supposed to face each other in a mandatory title fight for the World Boxing Council middleweight crown but the latter opted to vacate the title. Loeffler said that Golden Boy Promotions wants more time to build up the potential blockbuster fight.
Watch some of Manny Pacquiao's knockouts during his prime in the video below.