"The kid has a rock star following. It's unbelievable. When all the little girls were following Alvarez and I was left behind, I was getting trampled. It was like, wow this kid is the next guy," said Oscar De La Hoya. Saul "Canelo" Alvarez is a superstar at 20 years old . He looks more like Brian Scalabrine than Julio Cesar Chavez. Yet, Alvarez fights with a ferocious style that boxing fans love. He is ready for his next fight. Therefore, who are five possible opponents for Alvarez?
Loren Robinson at Yahoo Sports offers a fantastic overview of potential opponents that could challenge the 20 year old sensation.
Julio Cesar Chavez Jr.
There have been talks about a fight between Mexican star Julio Cesar Chavez Jr. and Alvarez. It would be an all-Mexican mega-fight. The winner of the fight would forever remain a boxing legend in Mexico. "Freddie wants that fight, we're ready. We just need a willingness on Canelo's part to do it. We're ready to do that fight. But, I don't think they want the fight," said Top Rank's CEO and promoter Bob Arum.
However, Chavez is already scheduled to fight Peter Manfredo Jr. on November 19th and he might have a tuneup fight in September. He would not be available to fight Canelo until 2012. There is also a significant weight difference between them. Alvarez is a junior middleweight and Chavez is a middleweight that weighed 180 pounds in his last boxing match.
Paul Williams
There has been discussion of Alvarez fighting the winner of the boxing match between Paul Williams and Erislandy Lara. "Yeah, there's a good possibility. Obviously we look at everything. Every offer and every aspect of it. But, we will have to see what happens in this fight," said Golden Boy's Promotions matchmaker Eric Gomez.
Alvarez is likely to return on September 17th the weekend of Mexican Independence Day. The date of the fight lowers chances of a boxing match against Williams since the date is so close to his last fight. He rebounded after his loss against Martinez by winning a controversial decision against Lara. Equally important, Williams showed enough flaws in his last two boxing matches that he will no longer be avoided by elite boxers.
Vanes Martirosyan
Vanes Martirosyan is interested in fighting Alvarez. "I hear Canelo wants to fight in September. I say let's do it. We can sell out staples. How often do you get two undefeated fighters in the ring together. My style and Canelo's style guarantees a great fight for the fans," said Martirosyan.
Golden Boy Promotions has discussed a fight against Martirosyan. He is Alvarez's next mandatory opponent. The fight probably will not happen in September. However, it will eventually happen since he is a mandatory challenger.
Alfonso Gomez
Alfonso Gomez has mentioned that he wants to fight Alvarez. His trainer Edison Reynoso has discussed that he would prefer for him to fight Gomez instead of Mayorga. Reynoso does not like how he has lost almost every major fight that he has been in. Yet, Mayorga still has a better resume than Gomez.
Gomez is an experienced fighter that has a following in Los Angeles which is a possible location for the boxing match. It would be a fight between two Mexican warriors on Mexican Independence Day. On the other hand, Gomez is promoted by Top Rank which could be an obstacle to getting the fight made. There is also a weight difference because Gomez is a welterweight.
Ricardo Mayorga
Alvarez's trainer Reynoso and Golden Boy Promoter Richard Schaefer have both mentioned Mayorga as a possible opponent. But, Schaefer is worried that Ricardo Mayorga and his Promoter Don King might price themselves out of the fight. King is still a hard negotiator.
Mayorga would provide a exciting fight. It is also fight that Alvarez could win. Likewise, it would be impressive if he could beat Mayorga in a more dominant fashion than Cotto. It could lead to bigger fights for Alvarez. It could help prove that he is not too young to fight the best junior middleweights in the world.
This article was written by a Yahoo! contributor Loren Robinson
