Canelo Alvarez doesn’t need to fight cruiserweights to prove greatness

Opinion: Canelo Alvarez is continuing down the wrong path with his decision to fight cruiserweight Ilunga Makabu.

I hate what Canelo Alvarez is doing.

And I’m not talking only about his surprising decision to move up to the cruiserweight division to challenge obscure WBC titleholder Ilunga Makabu. For me, it started with his fight against Rockey Fielding in December 2018.

That’s when it became obvious to me that the Mexican star was more interested in collecting increasingly meaningless title belts than facing the best possible opponents in a misguided attempt to “make history,” as he puts it.

Alvarez was so determined to win a title in a third division that he arranged to move up from middleweight to fight Fielding, who held the WBA “regular” super middleweight title at the time. Of course, Alvarez won easily, stopping the Englishman in three rounds, and then basked in the glory of his great accomplishment.

In fact, he wasn’t fooling anyone. Fielding was a mediocre fighter who owned a belt that no one takes seriously. The actual WBA champion at the time was Callum Smith, who Alvarez would later defeat to become a legitimate 168-pound titleholder.

I remember thinking at the time of the Fielding fight, “This isn’t the warrior who sought out genuine challenges for so many years. This was someone taking advantage of flaws in a broken system.”

Alvarez went back down to middleweight and accepted one of those genuine challenges, a meeting with talented Daniel Jacobs in May 2019. He won a close decision in a competitive fight, restoring some of the faith I had in him.

Then came an interesting move: Again bent on adding a title in another division, he jumped from 160 pounds to 175 to face then-WBO titleholder Sergey Kovalev in November 2019. I respected that decision because I respected Kovalev, who was aging but still a competent fighter and naturally bigger than Alvarez.

The decision to fight Kovalev when he did was carefully calculated. Kovalev had battled Anthony Yarde in a taxing bout only nine weeks earlier, which arguably wasn’t enough time for a 36-year-old to recover. Indeed, Kovalev was the most vulnerable of the 175-pound champions.

However, he was a reasonable choice of opponents for Alvarez given the circumstances. Roy Jones Jr., a light heavyweight, chose to fight John Ruiz instead of Lennox Lewis for obvious reasons when he made the bold decision to challenge for a heavyweight championship in 2003. Made sense.

After that came Alvarez’s quest to become undisputed super middleweight champion, which also had at least some merit. In a time of fragmented titles, fighters who hold all four major belts provide some clarity as to whom is the best in a particular division. And, yes, one could argue that the accomplishment is historic.

Here’s the problem: Alvarez didn’t fight the best 168-pounders to reach his goal. He fought Callum Smith, Billy Joe Saunders and Caleb Plant because they held the titles. I believe the best potential opponents at 168 or below were David Benavidez, Jermall Charlo and Gennadiy Golovkin, all of whom would have made for more compelling – and, most likely, more competitive – fights than the titleholders did.

Alvarez can argue that he was working within the system to pursue his goals. Right. Again, the problem is that the system is flawed, as corrupt sanctioning bodies often provide title shots to fighters who aren’t necessarily worthy. That isn’t to denigrate Smith, Saunders and Plant as weak fighters; they aren’t. They’re just not as good as the other three.

Finally, we arrive at Alvarez’s decision to face cruiserweight titleholder Makabu. Once again, he is making what seems to be a bold move to make history. But how bold is it really?

On one hand, a 168-pounder is moving up two weight classes to face a major titleholder who weighed 197½ pounds for his most-recent fight and has 25 knockouts in 28 victories. On the other hand, Makabu has faced only one fighter you’ve heard of – Tony Bellew – and was stopped in three rounds.

And here’s the kicker: WBC officials announced when they created the bridgerweight division that they planned to lower the cruiserweight limit from 200 pounds to 190. I’m not clear on when they plan to do that but I’m guessing it will happen before the Alvarez-Makabu fight, which would make Makabu’s size advantage more manageable.

I have to acknowledge that the weight difference is still significant. At the same time, the move seems gimmicky, particularly when real, exciting challenges against fighters closer to his size are available.

Benavidez, Charlo, Golovkin (who deserves a third shot at Alvarez after two inconclusive bouts) and the top light heavyweights are more accomplished than Makabu and are genuine threats to Alvarez. I, as a fan, was dying to see Alvarez vs. Benavidez and I know I wasn’t alone.

Alvarez has the clout to do as he pleases, as he made clear at the WBC convention in Mexico City. He declared, “I do what I want.” That doesn’t mean that we have to buy into the decisions he makes as he pursues his version of “history”.

I applaud him on a remarkable career. I acknowledge that he has faced a long list of elite opponents over the past decade, more than any other active fighter. And I don’t believe his current method of choosing opponents indicates he’s dodging anyone. That’s not who he is.

The problem, in my opinion, is that he has decided that flimsy belts and titles in more and more divisions is his path to greatness. News flash: He’s already great. He should take a step back and ask himself, “Who are actually the best possible opponents and who do the fans want to see me fight?” And then he should act accordingly.

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Canelo Alvarez vs. cruiserweight champ Ilunga Makabu? That’s the plan

Canelo Alvarez appears set to face cruiserweight champ Illunga Makabu in the spring.

Canelo Alvarez and Co. have unveiled another bold move.

Alvarez and his team asked the WBC at its convention in Mexico City to approve a fight between the Mexican superstar and 200-pound titleholder Ilunga Makabu next spring and the sanctioning body reportedly has signed off on it.

The incentive for Alvarez (57-1-2, 39 KOs) is the opportunity to win a major title in a fifth weight class.

Jermall Charlo, David Benavidez, Artur Beterbiev and Dmitry Bivol remain candidates to face Alvarez in the future but the newly crowned undisputed 168-pound champion evidently wants to make more history.

One possible site for the fight is Makabu’s native Congo, according to ESPN.

“I know … what he has done with the heavyweights he spars with, and that is why we asked for the fight,” Eddy Reynoso, Alvarez’s trainer and manager, told ESPN. “We know that [Makabu] is strong, but Canelo can beat him. … Many may say that it is crazy, but they also said that it was crazy when Canelo was junior middleweight champion and we were looking for middleweights, super middleweight, light heavyweights.

“I have a lot of confidence in Canelo. He is very strong and has many qualities, and I know that he is going to win that fight.”

Alvarez’s timing might be good in another sense: The WBC is set to lower it’s cruiserweight limit to 190 pounds following the creation of its bridgerweight division, which has a limit of 224 pounds.

The WBC has not announced when that adjustment will be made. Of course, it would benefit Alvarez a great deal.

Mauricio Sulaiman, president of the WBC, sounded excited about the stunning turn of events.

“The WBC has approved unanimously Saul ‘Canelo’ Alvarez to fight for the WBC cruiserweight championship of the world. Congratulations, Eddy,” Sulaiman said, according to Dan Rafael. “This is a very, very big surprise, unique, but I’m sure he will continue to make history. Congratulations.”

Makabu (28-2, 25 KOs) started his career as a light heavyweight but the 34-year-old has fought as a cruiserweight since 2010 and is 6-feet tall, which will give him a significant natural size advantage over Alvarez.

He won his title by outpointing Michal Cieslak in January of last year and successfully defended by stopping Olanrewaju Durodola in seven rounds last December. Makabu was stopped by Tony Bellew in three rounds in his first title shot, in 2016.

Alvarez already made a big divisional jump, moving up from 160 pounds to 175 to challenge titleholder Sergey Kovalev, who he stopped in 11 rounds. Moving from super middleweight to cruiserweight is a bold step, akin to Roy Jones Jr. transitioning from 175 to heavyweight to face John Ruiz.

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Canelo Alvarez vs. cruiserweight champ Ilunga Makabu? That’s the plan

Canelo Alvarez appears set to face cruiserweight champ Illunga Makabu in the spring.

Canelo Alvarez and Co. have unveiled another bold move.

Alvarez and his team asked the WBC at its convention in Mexico City to approve a fight between the Mexican superstar and 200-pound titleholder Ilunga Makabu next spring and the sanctioning body reportedly has signed off on it.

The incentive for Alvarez (57-1-2, 39 KOs) is the opportunity to win a major title in a fifth weight class.

Jermall Charlo, David Benavidez, Artur Beterbiev and Dmitry Bivol remain candidates to face Alvarez in the future but the newly crowned undisputed 168-pound champion evidently wants to make more history.

One possible site for the fight is Makabu’s native Congo, according to ESPN.

“I know … what he has done with the heavyweights he spars with, and that is why we asked for the fight,” Eddy Reynoso, Alvarez’s trainer and manager, told ESPN. “We know that [Makabu] is strong, but Canelo can beat him. … Many may say that it is crazy, but they also said that it was crazy when Canelo was junior middleweight champion and we were looking for middleweights, super middleweight, light heavyweights.

“I have a lot of confidence in Canelo. He is very strong and has many qualities, and I know that he is going to win that fight.”

Alvarez’s timing might be good in another sense: The WBC is set to lower it’s cruiserweight limit to 190 pounds following the creation of its bridgerweight division, which has a limit of 224 pounds.

The WBC has not announced when that adjustment will be made. Of course, it would benefit Alvarez a great deal.

Mauricio Sulaiman, president of the WBC, sounded excited about the stunning turn of events.

“The WBC has approved unanimously Saul ‘Canelo’ Alvarez to fight for the WBC cruiserweight championship of the world. Congratulations, Eddy,” Sulaiman said, according to Dan Rafael. “This is a very, very big surprise, unique, but I’m sure he will continue to make history. Congratulations.”

Makabu (28-2, 25 KOs) started his career as a light heavyweight but the 34-year-old has fought as a cruiserweight since 2010 and is 6-feet tall, which will give him a significant natural size advantage over Alvarez.

He won his title by outpointing Michal Cieslak in January of last year and successfully defended by stopping Olanrewaju Durodola in seven rounds last December. Makabu was stopped by Tony Bellew in three rounds in his first title shot, in 2016.

Alvarez already made a big divisional jump, moving up from 160 pounds to 175 to challenge titleholder Sergey Kovalev, who he stopped in 11 rounds. Moving from super middleweight to cruiserweight is a bold step, akin to Roy Jones Jr. transitioning from 175 to heavyweight to face John Ruiz.

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WBC plans to lower cruiserweight limit from 200 to 190

The WBC plans to lower the cruiserweight limit from 200 to 190 pounds as part of adding its new “bridgerweight” division.

WBC President Mauricio Sulaiman plans to make another change just below the heavyweight division.

First, he announced the creation of what he’s calling “bridgerweight,” between the current cruiserweight and heavyweight divisions. The weight limit will be 224 pounds, which he says will serve smaller heavyweights who can’t compete with the division’s behemoths.

And, now, he says he plans to lower the cruiserweight limit from 200 pounds to 190 in time, meaning those between 191 and 224 will be the parameters of the new weight class.

The cruiserweight limit was raised from 190 to 200 a decade ago.

“We are eventually looking into moving it back to 190 pounds,”Sulaiman told Pro Boxing Fans. “[WBC cruiserweight titleholder Ilunga] Makabu just called me. He’s preparing for his title defense at 200 pounds but … he can do … 190 pounds.

“It’s a continuous effort to see what is more reasonable, but not be unjust to a fighter who has been competing in that weight. We’re talking to all cruiserweights and heavyweights. There’s also a good universe of fighters that have been calling to see if they can be rated in the division.

“We’re looking at maybe doing 20 fighters ratings instead of the 40 that we have in each division, but it’s all going to depend. Rankings are [based] upon merit and quality and that’s something that will not be changed.

“In December, we’re going to have the rankings for bridgerweight.”

It’s not clear whether the other sanctioning bodies will follow the WBC’s lead in creating the new division and lowering the cruiserweight limit.

“Bridger” is named for Bridger Walker, a 6-year-old who was injured protecting his sister from a dog attack. The name “super cruiserweight” has been floated as a long term option.

WBC plans to lower cruiserweight limit from 200 to 190

The WBC plans to lower the cruiserweight limit from 200 to 190 pounds as part of adding its new “bridgerweight” division.

WBC President Mauricio Sulaiman plans to make another change just below the heavyweight division.

First, he announced the creation of what he’s calling “bridgerweight,” between the current cruiserweight and heavyweight divisions. The weight limit will be 224 pounds, which he says will serve smaller heavyweights who can’t compete with the division’s behemoths.

And, now, he says he plans to lower the cruiserweight limit from 200 pounds to 190 in time, meaning those between 191 and 224 will be the parameters of the new weight class.

The cruiserweight limit was raised from 190 to 200 a decade ago.

“We are eventually looking into moving it back to 190 pounds,”Sulaiman told Pro Boxing Fans. “[WBC cruiserweight titleholder Ilunga] Makabu just called me. He’s preparing for his title defense at 200 pounds but … he can do … 190 pounds.

“It’s a continuous effort to see what is more reasonable, but not be unjust to a fighter who has been competing in that weight. We’re talking to all cruiserweights and heavyweights. There’s also a good universe of fighters that have been calling to see if they can be rated in the division.

“We’re looking at maybe doing 20 fighters ratings instead of the 40 that we have in each division, but it’s all going to depend. Rankings are [based] upon merit and quality and that’s something that will not be changed.

“In December, we’re going to have the rankings for bridgerweight.”

It’s not clear whether the other sanctioning bodies will follow the WBC’s lead in creating the new division and lowering the cruiserweight limit.

“Bridger” is named for Bridger Walker, a 6-year-old who was injured protecting his sister from a dog attack. The name “super cruiserweight” has been floated as a long term option.

Ilunga Makabu outpoints Michael Cieslak to win vacant 200-pound title

Ilunga Makabu rallied in the second half of the fight to outpoint Michal Cieslak and win a vacant cruiserweight title in in Africa.

A strange sequence of events ended with Ilunga Makabu winning a cruiserweight title in his native country.

Makabu signed a contract with promoter Don King in September only to sign a contract without him to fight Michal Cieslak for the vacant WBC title Friday in Kinshasa, Democratic Republic of the Congo, where King hoped to reprise the legendary Rumble in the Jungle featuring Muhammad Ali and George Foreman.

King had his lawyers send out a cease-and-desist letter to the WBC, hoping to stop the fight. Instead, some sort of deal was reached and the fight went on.

Cieslak (19-1, 13 KOs) was particularly effective early in the fight but Makabu (27-2, 24 KOs) gradually took control. He put Cieslak down in Round 4, although a rabbit punch seemed to be the key blow. Makabu went down himself in Round 5 when his glove touched the canvas after he absorbed a punch. However, Makabu got more work done in the later rounds to win a unanimous decision.

The scores were 114-112, 115-111 and 116-111.

Makabu, 32, was stopped by Tony Bellew in three rounds in his first attempt to win a major title, in 2016. He has now won eight consecutive fights.

Cieslak, 30, had never fought outside his native Poland.

Don King attempts to squelch Makabu-Cieslak title fight

Don King has sent a cease and desist letter to the WBC’s Mauricio Sulaiman in an effort to kill the Ilunga Makabu-Michal Cieslak fight.

Not so fast, says Don King.

A law firm representing Don King Promotions has sent a cease and desist letter to WBC President Mauricio Sulaiman in an effort to kill a cruiserweight title fight between Ilunga Makabu and Michal Cieslak, which is tentatively scheduled for later this month.

King claims Makabu is under contract with his company.

The letter reads in part:

“DKP is Makabu’s exclusive, world-wide promoter for any and all of Makabu’s professional boxing matches throughout the World and no one, other than DKP, is authorized to engage Makabu’s services.

“Demand is made upon the WBC to cancel the Makabu v. Cieslak bout and to make such cancellation public by noticing said cancellation on the WBC’s website. Since the WBC sanctioned this bout without DKP’s knowledge, DKP must conclude that the WBC communicated with others to arrange this bout so demand is made upon the WBC to immediately notify the person or persons the WBC communicated with in arranging this bout and inform them that the WBC is not sanctioning the Makabu v. Cieslak bout and that the bout is immediately cancelled.

“DKP further demands the WBC and others immediately cease and desist any and all actions or communications of any kind with Makabu. DKP has not and does not consent to Makabu’s participation in the Makabu v. Cieslak bout or any bout and has not and does not grant permission for anyone to engage Makabu’s services.

“Please be assured that we take this matter very seriously and intend to protect DKP’s rights. DKP demands that the WBC take the steps requested in this letter on or before Saturday, January 4, 2020 to cancel the Makabu v. Cieslak bout, pull the WBC’s sanctioning of the bout and to cease and desist any and all communications with any person, persons or entities, other than DKP, regarding Makabu and to confirm to the undersigned attorney by email … that you have received this letter and that you shall promptly comply with its demands.”

DKP has not indicated whether the WBC has responded to the letter.

The fight reportedly is tentatively scheduled for Jan. 25 in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Makabu’s native country.

Makabu and Cieslak are ranked Nos. 1 and 2 by the WBC, respectively.