Mexican boxing phenom Saul ‘Canelo’ Alvarez is scheduled to take on Joshua Clottey this December 6th, perfectly setting up his follow-up fight for 6 months down the road, on Cinco de Mayo, Mexican Independence day. Though the lines are not up for the Clottey fight yet, Alvarez is expected to come in a wide favorite, and a win sets up a big money fight for the May festivities in 2015.
And who better to face ‘Canelo’ than Floyd Mayweather Jr? After all, ‘Money’ has fought on four of the last five Cinco de Mayo’s, making it a de-facto holiday for Mayweather and his boxing followers as well. The two have fought once before, and a compelling story could be crafted around a re-match and whether ‘Canelo’ has closed the gap with the pound for pound No. 1.
Here is a plan that would be better for boxing and for the fans, and is not far-fetched at all. Split the two big draws up, and add to more big draws as opponents.
Prior to signing to fight Clottey, Alvarez was linked to a potential big money fight with Puerto Rico’s Miguel Cotto and a match between the two has not been forgotten by both parties.
With Manny Pacquiao fighting Chris Algieri this November, his schedule too could be lined up for a May fight. After Mayweather’s last two outings received less than stellar reviews, he is going to need a strong fight to be competitive against the younger, fresher face in ‘Canelo’. Mayweather could head to the UK where Amir Khan is still a draw, but the only ones talking big fights for Khan these days are Khan and his people. Kell Brook on the other hand, would likely be able to fill Wembley opposite Mayweather.
But not even a Kell Brook match in the UK would compare to a Pacquiao fight for Mayweather. What the ‘Money’ team needs is an opponent who brings a threat and brings intrigue, not more dance partners. The final hurdle to this fight being negotiated is Pac getting by Algieri, which may not be as easy as it seems. But if nothing goes wrong for Manny against the young upstart in November, he too is faced with a lack of credible opponents and would do well with facing Mayweather at this point in his career.
So can you imagine? Canelo-Cotto and Pacman-Moneyman all on Cinco de Mayo in 2015? Dare to dream.
