Canelo Alvarez reopens door to Oleksandr Usyk fight despite Tyson Fury talks
Canelo Alvarez's promoter Eddie Hearn has once again stated the Mexican is open to a fight with Oleksandr Usyk.
Alvarez has not fought since retaining his 168lb titles with a trilogy win over Gennady Golovkin last year, but is expected to be making a return in May. The Mexican wants to continue taking the biggest challenges, which includes a revenge bid against Dmitry Bivol who he lost to when stepping up to 175lb in May last year.
In previous conversations, Alvarez has even teased a move one higher to cruiserweight with a fight against current heavyweight Usyk seen as the biggest to make it at 200lb. And in a fresh update on Canelo's next career move, Matchroom Boxing's Hearn has claimed he joked with Alvarez about beating Usyk after he recently scored a rematch win over Anthony Joshua.
“Never have I got the impression – never have I even doubted – that there is one fighter that he wouldn’t fight," Hearn told the DAZN Boxing Show when talking up a clash with Usyk. "I feel like because of what Canelo’s given to the sport and because of the risks he’s taken, because of the fight’s he’s been involved with, I think he genuinely wants these champions to do the same and go down the same route.
"People like David Benavidez, for me, needs to make a statement to make a fight. Everything is ‘no problem, no problem.’ After Usyk beat AJ, you know, I was kind of joking with him – ‘no problem, I’ll fight Usyk.’ Whether you think he’s made or you think he has a chance, with all due respect he would genuinely fight Usyk at cruiserweight. He fought Bivol at 175. He would have no problem fighting Benavidez at 160.”
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A fight with Usyk seems unlikely in the current climate with the Ukrainian chasing undisputed glory in the blue-riband division. It looks set that he will next face Tyson Fury to earn the final belt, at which point he could elect to retire from the sport or accept further mandatory challenges if he wins.
Canelo Alvarez is eyeing a clash with Oleksandr Usyk (Getty Images)Would you like to see Oleksandr Usyk face Canelo Alvarez? Let us know in the comments section below
However the 36-year-old previously teased a move back down to 200lb, where he previously reigned as undisputed king, due to the physical demands to remain at heavyweight. “I was thinking about returning to cruiserweight and getting a few more of the world belts," Usyk told Parimatch."You know, being a heavyweight means you have to be really heavy. You must eat a lot.
"It’s not hard to fight with these giants, but it’s really hard to eat all the time. "And now I work much more than I did as a cruiserweight, particularly in the training camps. I had to swim ten kilometres and train hard. At this moment I just want to stop and take a rest. A half of a year of training is hard work."
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