Saul Canelo Alvarez (Photo : Getty Images)
WBC middleweight champion Saul "Canelo" Alvarez could fight WBA, IBO, and IBF middleweight titlist in September next year, according to a report.
The WBC has given its middleweight champion Alvarez until Dec. 11 to negotiate a fight with Golovkin, or the Mexican could get stripped off the title belt and make "GGG" the automatic champion.
However, according to Dan Ambrose of Boxing News 24, WBC president Mauricio Sulaiman could be talking about letting Alvarez opt for a voluntary defense of his middleweight belt, instead of the mandatory title fight against Golovkin given by the governing body.
"We are in communication with Golden Boy and K2 representatives of both fighters, but all goes well underway," Sulaiman told ESPN Deportes.
"The parties understand what the commitments and guidelines are, and I'm confident he will make an agreement that will be released soon. I feel that everything is on track and in accordance with regulations."
Ambrose noted that Alvarez's voluntary defense could happen in May, while the superfight against Golovkin will take place in September, which are both Mexican holidays in 2016.
Ambrose wrote: "The talk is that Suliaman is going to let Canelo take a fight before the Golovkin fight in early 2016 before he potentially faces him in September next year."
Alvarez has been insisting he will only face Golovkin at a catchweight-stipulated match, particularly at 155 pounds, where the Mexican champ claims he fights better.
A mandatory title defense should not have given Alvarez any power to impose a handicap match against Golovkin, who is also persistent to settle the fight at a full 160-pound middleweight limit. But the WBC, for some reason, is not playing it strict with Alvarez.
One possible reason why the governing body is inclining to grant Alvarez's catchweight-stipulated match is the pay-per-view numbers that both fighters could possibly generate.
Chris Mannix of Sports Illustrated was told by HBO's Mark Taffet that the Cotto-Canelo bout generated 900,000 in PPV buys and nearly $58 million in revenue.
On the other hand, Golovkin's last outing, which was last October against David Lemieux, only generated 150,000 PPV buys. These numbers are substantially far from the figures Alvarez posted, and could possibly be a factor for Golovkin to agree in fighting on Canelo's terms.
The figures state the obvious that Golovkin has no leverage to insist a fight with Alvarez at 160 pounds due to his low PPV numbers, leaving the undefeated Kazakh no choice but to agree in catchweight stipulations.
But considering that their fight schedule is set in a Mexican holiday, which would probably boost the bout's PPV buys, Golovkin could still stick with his verdict to fight Alvarez at the full middleweight limit of 160 pounds.
