A little over a year ago – May 7, 2022 – Dmitry Bivol won almost the brightest victory in the history of Russian professional boxing, beating the best boxer in all respects, regardless of weight categories, the highest paid boxer on the planet, Mexican Saul Alvarez. Bivol’s WBA light heavyweight belt was on the line in this fight, and the Mexican didn’t risk his undisputed middleweight title.
Canelo, per the contract for this fight, has an option for a rematch. And the Mexican has every intention of using this object, but so far only with words. Since May 2022, Canelo has easily beaten (well without contest) the old Kazakh Gennady Golovkin, and last weekend in Guadalajara had no problem against the British John Ryder. After this predictable victory, Canelo again remembered Bivol.
spoke with the coach of the Russian champion Gennady Mashyanov. From this interview you can learn:
“I HAVE NOT SEEN ANYTHING NEW FROM CANELO IN THE FIGHT WITH RIDER”
– Gennady Yuryevich, let’s start with an analysis of the fight between Canelo and Ryder. The Mexican again failed to impress, although he won convincingly by unanimous decision.
– Well, what can I say about this fight – I haven’t seen anything new from Canelo. Alvarez understood he was winning, so he didn’t add or force. After all, he had the opportunity to finish off Ryder. But he didn’t go there at all.
– Do such fights go to the most, where the main plot is whether Ryder will be able to reach the end?
“Ryder, as I understand it, is a mandatory competitor.
“Knowing all the resources of Canelo’s team, they can pick opponents and delay those mandatory defenses.
– That’s what I don’t know. They also have mandatory suitors in other versions, but Canelo’s team chose a calm option in order to win the interim fight for sure and calmly prepare for a rematch (with Bivol) if they plan to. TO DO.
– Immediately after the victory, Canelo again announced his desire to fight Bivol, but on the same conditions. As a result, the Mexican wants to box again in the light heavyweight division.
– It is desirable for us to fight for four belts (that is, in the second middleweight). Let’s see. Negotiations will begin now. Maybe it will be possible to fight at 76 kg.
– Is to say that boxing with Alvarez in the light heavyweight division is no longer interesting?
– Well, the interest in this is to end this issue so that there is no question that he was injured, that he could not prepare normally, etc. He also had an explanation for this defeat. Apparently, before this fight, he was not so ready.
“HE WILL BE IN GAME OF REVENGE WITH BIVOL”
– As a coach, do you want a rematch between Bivol and Alvarez?
– I would like this fight to take place for the title of absolute champion. If they are not ready for such a step, then why not fight at light heavyweight? Apparently, Canelo is not so easy to weigh 76 kg.
Are you also ruling out that Canelo is simply afraid of losing all four super middleweight belts?
I don’t know what he is sure of and what he is not. It’s just that in a miss, whether at 76kg or 79kg, Canelo will lose so much that he can get back into boxing. Maybe he’s not ready for this. He puts a lot on the line for revenge. Another defeat against Dima will testify to the decline of his career.
– But the prerequisites for another Alvarez defeat in the confrontation with Bivol are very high.
– We will try to win, and even more convincingly than in the first fight.
– It also seems that Alvarez only wants revenge in words, and he himself delays the second duel with Bivol as much as possible.
It’s hard to speak for his team. Canelo wants a rematch. It’s just that he will put his entire future career on the line for this rematch.
– Is it necessary to do it? Yet Canelo today is a business machine, not just an athlete.
– And if he doesn’t have a rematch with Dima, he will lose a lot of fans. After the fight with Dima, he significantly decreased his fans. If he doesn’t hold a rematch, he risks losing credibility and fans. It seems to me that he will try to get revenge again. And we will give him the opportunity to have a second fight.
– In general, Alvarez notably stumbled on Bivol and is now at an impasse, according to your words – you have to fight, and there is a big risk of ending your career, and if you do not fight , your reputation will be damaged.
– Yes yes. I had this impression. You always have to put yourself in someone else’s shoes for certain conclusions. To not have revenge is to admit that he is weaker, that he is not great… Well, not that he is not great. Canelo is a great boxer. Just not getting a rematch means admitting you’re not a king.
“BETERBIEV SHOULD EARN A LOT MORE AT HIS LEVEL”
“But Bivol also has a downtime now, and there are no rivals on the horizon.
– It’s not stressful. Yes, we were counting on a fight in June (earlier Bivol manager Vadim Kornilov told that a date was set for the Russian fight in the USA – June 17). We wanted a spectacular and competitive fight, but the rivals refused. The same Joshua Buatsi refused, although he was in Matchroom, and he was persuaded to fight with Dima, because he was in the mandatory challenger status. And he was offered decent money, but he left Matchroom at the last moment.
– The same Mexican Jaime Munguia wanted to meet Bivol, but in the end he will face Sergey Derevyanchenko on June 10.
– They offered Munguya. Well, we said, “Let there be Mungiya.” He is very popular and everyone says he is the new star of Mexican boxing. We also accepted Munguya. But he also refused.
– In other words, Bivol has no rivals as such.
– Dima has rivals… It’s a rematch with Canelo and a fight with Artur (Beterbiev). But Arthur is busy now, he has mandatory protection. And what’s next… This is the situation.
By the way, Top Rank won the auction for the fight between Beterbiev and Callum Smith. $2.115 million was offered, $15,000 more than Matchroom’s offer. It’s just that those two million will be at stake, that’s all the math. Arthur at his level should receive at least five times what he currently receives for these fights. But I don’t know the nuances of their relationship.
Watch live broadcasts of boxing tournaments on the federal channel and the thematic channels of the holding, as well as on the sites matchtv.ru and sportbox.ru.
Source : MatchTV
I am Ashley Ortiz and I am a professional journalist working for Athletistic. My specialty is in sports journalism, particularly boxing. I have written articles for some of the most renowned publications on the subject, and my work has been featured across both print and digital media platforms.
