UFC boss Dana White’s decision to stage one of his events on September 14 has resulted in Canelo Alvarez leaning toward potentially choosing British boxer Chris Eubank Jr. for his next fight in September.
Weight Class Mismatch: A Familiar Story
Eubank Jr (33-3, 24 KOs) would be moving up from middleweight to challenge Canelo (61-2-2, 39 KOs) for his undisputed 168-lb championship in a fight that could take occur two to three weeks after the September 14th date.
Casual fans may not care that Eubank Jr. is a middleweight, but many fans will. Every Alvarez fight became a dilemma between reality and fantasy.
Canelo: A Law Unto Himself?
To Canelo’s followers and some boxing organizations, the boxing rules do not apply to the Mexicans. Recently, Eubank Jr. said, “Canelo does what he wants,” and the crazy thing is that he gets away with it.
The boxing organizations or promoters who have attempted to put Canelo in a mandatory fight against any dangerous rival have ended with empty hands.
For example, David Benavidez and David Morrell had to move up to 175 lbs because the current super middleweight champion, Canelo, didn’t want to face any of them.
The disappointing thing is that no organization dared force it because they knew that Canelo would leave them with empty hands and throw their titles into a garbage barrel, even though Benavidez was the mandatory rival.
The Business of Boxing: Casual Fans and PPV Buys
Here are two factors:
- Sanctioning bodies don’t want to be out in the cold when the cake is delivered.
- Most of Canelo’s followers are casual boxing fans.
As Mexican Independence Day approaches, Canelo is eager to return to the ring, but not against the opponents that he should be facing, David Benavidez and David Morrell Jr.
Canelo and his team know that casual fans will purchase his events on PPV on the Mexican Independence Day holiday, and it doesn’t matter who he fights. This is the format they have used for many years, and it works.
The two rivals that are in the running for Canelo’s fight in September:
– Edgar Berlanga
– Chris Eubank Jr.
Destination: England?
Berlanga has the bad luck of Dana White’s decision to stage his UFC event on the September 14th Mexican Independence Day holiday in Las Vegas, which would conflict with Canelo if he were to stay on that date and compete with that event.
Canelo fighting Berlanga in New York wouldn’t work on that date because the PPV buys would be diminished due to fans spending money ordering Dana White’s UFC event on PPV.
On September 21st, a big event between IBF heavyweight champion Daniel Dubois and Anthony Joshua will occur in London, England. Putting Canelo vs. Eubank Jr there seems to be the most logical thing to do,
Even though Canelo won’t be defending against a true super middleweight when/if he faces Eubank, Canelo’s team knows that won’t matter. They know that British fans will be there cheering for Eubank Jr, knowing he has no chance of winning.
If you want to know who we should blame for all this, you must understand that those attending these events are the ones who are reinforcing this behavior from Canelo. They’re the ones that allow this to happen. Unfortunately, those who know these events are absurd are a minority.
A Foregone Conclusion?
Does anyone in good judgment believe that Eubank Jr. will have any chance of winning that fight? I doubt the hardcore fans who follow boxing believe it. The casual fans have short memories and forget that Canelo’s team has used this format before, and they have been used to build it.
In short, this will be another of Canelo’s fights in which we already know the result, and it will become more of a sparring session. Thousands of people will be in the arena, watching on television and ordering it on PPV.
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