Canelo Alvarez faces repercussions after US$150M demand for David Benavidez fight

It has been 3 months since Canelo Alvarez last fought and the hunt for his next opponent is gathering steam. However, the search has been yielding slim results, as the unified super middleweight champion has either defeated every good contender or rejected any potential fight with big opponents. While the rumors of him considering Terence Crawford are rising rapidly, there is no confirmation regarding that. Furthermore, a few months ago, he also declined the chance to face former two-time champion David Benavidez, claiming he would only fight for a payout of at least US$150 million.

On Sunday, 5 January, in a conversation with FightHype, Matchroom boxing honcho Eddie Hearn who has had a long association with the Mexican champ before he left to join up with the PBC, reflected on Canelo’s choice of rejecting the Benavidez fight. Furthermore, he also stated how his unfathomable demand might leave him hanging without a possible good opponent.

Is Canelo Alvarez pricing himself out?

While talking about how Terence Crawford vs. Canelo Alvarez might be a mismatch, Hearn shifted his focus to the lack of opponents the 62-2-2 boxer currently has. He asked, “What are the options for Canelo Alvarez?” as the interviewer dropped the name of David Benavidez as the first suggestion.

Which fighter did Canelo Alvarez reportedly decline to face due to a high payout demand?

David Benavidez

Terence Crawford

Dmitry Bivol

Jermall Charlo

Even though Hearn knows that it would be a brilliant match, the time has almost passed. “Yeah, but I don’t think that’s going to happen either. You know he's put his flag in the sand, isn’t he?” exclaimed the British promoter. He further talked about the insane payout demand by Canelo and how Benavidez can target better things rather than chase a fight with Canelo. “150 million? I know he takes less but I just don’t see that.”



Not long ago, Benavidez was the top contender in the super middleweight division. After defeating the likes of Caleb Plant and Demetrius Andrade, he was next in line to challenge Canelo Alvarez for his undisputed super middleweight championship. But that opportunity never came and in the end, he made the switch to 175 lbs and immediately won the interim title there. As Hearn said, he has no reason to look back now.



The Matchroom Boxing head then discussed all the potential opponents for Canelo Álvarez. Even though his list had many viable options, he was doubtful about every single clash.



No viable contenders at 168 lbs anymore

The first name that Hearn suggested was Dmitry Bivol. He declared, “You know, Bivol beats Beterbiev on February 22nd, Canelo could fight Bivol for the Undisputed light heavyweight world championship. There’s a fight.” However, even though Canelo has shown interest in re-matching Bivol, the 23-1 boxer has shown no interest whatsoever.

Hearn then dropped the names of fighters like Jermall Charlo, and William Scull, but had his reservations about them too. “There’s a fight, Charlo. People talk about William Scull. I mean you know. Canelo will fight anyone but I don’t see a lot of options for him right now,” explained Eddie Hearn begrudgingly.

He circled back to Terence Crawford and claimed that with the lack of options, Canelo Alvarez might even accept fighting ‘Bud’. However, “if it happens, as good as Terence Crawford is, I just think he’s (Canelo) too big for him,” contended Hearn.