By: Sean Crose
Canelo Alvarez is exceedingly popular in more ways than one. Not only does the man probably have more fans than any other single fighter in boxing, he essentially has every top operator in his general weight realm looking to engage him in a big money fight. Benevidez. Charlo. Golovkin. Andrade. These are the kinds of high profile names Canelo can choose to be future opponents. It’s good to be Canelo right now, but the man himself doesn’t think it should all be about him. “We only want to make history and we proved that,” Canelo tells ESNews. “I say I’m okay with that. I’ll fight anybody, but they (potential future opponents) need to fight each other, too. They’re always waiting for me because they want a good payday. I know that. But they need to fight each other.”
Canelo recently signed to fight WBA light heavyweight titlist Dmitry Bivol as part of an overall deal with Eddie Hearn’s Matchroom boxing that will likely also see the red haired star facing arch rival Golovkin in a third fight. These two opponents are by no means pushovers. Bivol is undefeated for a reason…and many feel Golovkin has been robbed by judges not once, but twice, when facing Canelo. Both Golovkin and Bivol have been eager to get in the ring (or, in the case of Golovkin, get back in the ring) with Canelo. To the point – these are not easy fights. Still, critics will criticize and there are claims that Canelo should be focusing his efforts on facing “stronger” opposition.
Canelo, however, is nothing if not a confident man. He’s made his decision and now he feels people will have to live with it. “Everybody wants to fight me but they have many options too to fight each other,” he says. “This year I’m busy.” Canelo then states outright that his goal is legacy not wealth. “I just want to make history,” he says, making it clear that he looks for challenges like the one presented by Bivol. “He’s a very good fighter,” Canelo adds, making it clear that a victory over the hard hitting Russian will carry with it more than just financial rewards.
Although it’s obvious to anyone who follows boxing carefully that Canelo loves the benefits of earning millions of dollars, the man is unlike Floyd Mayweather, who seems to luxuriate in his earnings. “The money is there no matter what,” Canelo says. “I don’t care about money I care about my legacy.”