Junior Middleweight

Saul Alvarez (40-0-1, 29 KO) may have another fight before the close of 2012. On December 8th, Alvarez wants to face Floyd Mayweather (43-0, 26 KO) or Miguel Cotto (37-3, 30 KO), according to sources from Boxing Scene.

Alvarez is the WBC junior middleweight world champion and Mayweather is the WBA junior middleweight world champ. A unification match between the two would be highly lucrative.

Since Alvarez is a hungry 21-year-old kid, he would naturally want to take on Mayweather to clarify who's the best at 154 pounds.

Though Mayweather is 35 years old and coming out of jail, his superior skill would be hard to overcome for the fresh-faced Alvarez.

Alvarez's physical gifts of power and size are nothing Mayweather hasn't seen before. Nor would they be new to former WBA world champ Cotto.

Cotto's first two losses came to fighters with power and lots of activity. While Alvarez is a powerful puncher, he seems timid about throwing punches.

A 40-year-old Shane Mosley (46-8-1, 39 KO) was able to land a lot and not get much return fire from Alvarez. Though Alvarez eventually opened up, he could've been far more aggressive.

Cotto can possibly be overwhelmed by activity from the bigger Alvarez if he uses his upcoming September 15th match against Josesito Lopez (30-4, 18 KO) to practice opening up effectively.

It would be better for Alvarez if he could face more limited brawlers such as James Kirkland (31-1, 27 KO), or tricky technician Carlos Molina (19-5-2, 6 KO) on December 8th.

If Alvarez got past a Kirkland or Molina, fighters that would force him to be more aggressive, he could possibly be ready for Cotto in May.

But facing a junior welterweight in Lopez, alone, is not going to be enough to prepare for someone as experienced as Cotto or Mayweather.

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Saul "Canelo" Alvarez is supposed to be the future of pay-per-view boxing. A project of Golden Boy Promotions and protege of Oscar De La Hoya. He had a bright future of being the first man to give Mayweather his first professional loss and the new pay-per-view attraction after Mayweather and Pacquiao retired.

Since he won his WBC 154-pound belt, he has been nothing short of a joke at the weight class. How people are still able to get behind him and support him is beyond me.

Alvarez first won his belt when he won a lopsided decision over Matthew Hatton, a welterweight fighter that is best known for being Ricky Hatton's brother.

From there, he defended his belt against Ryan Rhodes, a highly touted British domestic junior middleweight who's actually the best person Alvarez has fought since he won his title. He impressed and knocked out the challenger in 12 rounds.

From there, everything just went down hill.

Next, Alvarez defended his title against welterweight Alfonso Gomez, a fighter famously known for being on the first season of The Contender and retiring Arturo Gatti in his last professional fight. Gomez was actually giving Alvarez fits before he was knocked out in the sixth, a stoppage that was too premature.

After Gomez, Alvarez defended against a very shot Kermit Cintron. Normally, I don't like referring to fighters as shot unless there's very good reason too. Cintron was just that, after his ring dive fiasco against Paul Williams, he returned only to lose a lopsided decision to Carlos Molina. He followed the Molina fight with a tune-up fight against an unknown fighter and was for some reason offered a shot against Alvarez.

It was evident before the fight even started that he'd be knocked out. Cintron was out by the fifth and Canelo was given another easy defense of his title.

Finally, earlier this year, he defended his belt against the 40-year-old Shane Mosley who hadn't won a fight since 2009. The same Shane Mosley who showed nothing in his last three fights against Pacquiao, Mayweather and Sergio Mora.

Mosley was actually game for this fight and was doing more than his last three, but it was no use against the bigger Alvarez who pummeled him for 12 rounds.

Since Alvarez won his belt, his run of opponents has been a joke. He has fought three welterweights in Gomez, Hatton and Mosley and only two junior middleweights, one who had no business even being within 10 feet of Alvarez.

Alvarez constantly gets passes for his opponents because he's only 21 and still developing. The truth is Alvarez's time for development is over and has been since he won his belt. Unless he actually wants to start defending his belt against real competition or even just junior middleweights, he shouldn't be wearing it.

There are a bunch of people in his division lining up to fight him, and he constantly ignores them to fight opponents who don't deserve to be in there with him.

According to boxingscene.com,there are multiple sources saying that Canelo's next opponent would be either Mayorga or Josesito Lopez. Mayorga is more unlikely since it came from his mouth and he's crazy, but this is a joke beyond belief.

Alvarez has prime competition calling him out, and he's looking to a old washed-up fighter who hasn't done anything since 2007 and a junior welterweight that took out his former welterweight opponent, Victor Ortiz.

I give credit to Alvarez for initially taking the Paul Williams fight, even the James Kirkland fight. But Ortiz was pushing it and now he's either facing a fighter faded beyond belief or a junior welterweight.

Until Canelo decides to fight actual competition—who are at least in the same division as him—he's the joke of the division. 

Cornelius "K-9" Bundrage (32-4, 19 KO) scored a 7th round TKO against Cory Spinks (39-7, 11 KO) on Saturday night on Showtime according to Boxing Scene.

IBF junior middleweight world champ Bundrage defeated Spinks by 5th round TKO two years ago to win his world title.

Spinks managed to lasts two rounds longer but was still heavily overpowered, being dropped once in the opening rounds and three rounds in Round 7 before the fight was stopped.

Bundrage is a free agent after leaving former promoter Don King and Golden Boy Promotions is expected to line up his next couple of fights, starting with Cuban defector Erislandy Lara (17-1-1, 11 KO).

Lara fought on the undercard, defeating Freddy Hernandez (30-3-1, 20 KO) by unanimous decision. Lara has been a highly ranked junior middleweight and Bundrage would be his first title shot.

Saul Alvarez (40-0-1, 29 KO) is a 21-year-old WBC junior middleweight world champ still needs an opponent for his scheduled Sept. 15 fight, but his promoter has ruled out Bundrage and Lara.

 The date of Bundrage-Lara and the choice for Alvarez's Sept. 15 opponent should be revealed in the coming weeks.

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A couple days after Saul "Canelo" Alvarez (40-0-1, 29 KOs) saw his scheduled September 15 opponent, Victor Ortiz, quit in his bout against Josesito Lopez (per ESPN), Alvarez has reportedly gotten himself another opponent for his fight at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas in WBA junior middleweight champion Austin Trout (25-0, 14 KOs), according to Dan Rafael of ESPN on Twitter.

Rafael tweeted:

Told that @caneloOficial's 9/15 fight will be on @SHOsports, not PPV (or CBS, which I never believed anyway). Likely facing @NoDoubtTrout

— Dan Rafael (@danrafaelespn) June 25, 2012

This not only clears up who Canelo's opponent will be, but also how the fight will air on TV, as the Showtime showing debunks the CBS rumors that were floating around (per CBS).

Alvarez-Ortiz was said to be on Showtime pay-per-view, but now with Ortiz out of the picture and a big enough name not available, it appears that Showtime feels like it would be best to put the bout on their regular subscriber-based network.

That's because PPV sales would dip without a bigger name and the competing Sergio Martinez-Julio Cesar Chavez Jr. bout—just a few miles away from the MGM Grand at the Thomas and Mack Center in Las Vegas—the same day will also hurt PPV sales.

Trout is no hack. As stated earlier, he is the current WBA junior middleweight title holder and has an impressive 25-0 record. Still, a bout with "Canelo"  without a doubt would be Trout's biggest fight to date.

Although the boxing world lost the bout that would be a bigger draw, seeing what Trout is really made of against Alvarez will still be a great fight. However, it will be less of a competitor against the other big fight down the road the same night in Las Vegas.

Just a day after pulling out if his proposed fight against Saul "Canelo" Alvarez, James Kirkland has now said he would still take the "Canelo" fight if he was paid a whopping $2.5 million according to The Ring Magazine.

First off, Kirkland re-injured his right shoulder during his first workout since coming off surgery on that shoulder and obviously isn't anywhere near fighting shape. Kirkland (30-1-1, 27 KOs) now has said he will be able to fight in October or November which means he would want the Alvarez (40-0-1, 29 KOs) bout to moved from its planned September 15 fight date as well, which we all know Golden Boy Promotions will not do.

Kirkland told The Ring Magazine:

It was six figures. And that was an insult, and I'm being honest, said Kirkland, who confirmed he requested at least $2.5 million. That was one thing that I said. But they could work it to $2 million.

With Kirkland claiming he was offered a six figure payday for the Alvarez fight initially, why in the world would "Canelo" and his camp agree to give Kirkland a bigger payday now, especially after saying he would be fighting at less than 100 percent.

Kirkland explained to The Ring Magazine:

If I'm going to take a fight like this, and I've got one arm, and it takes time to rehabilitate and to train, then pay me for that. I would do that, but pay me for it. If my career is over with after this fight, I want to make sure that I don't walk away with nothing.

So, basically, Kirkland wants a huge payday to be a sparring partner for Alvarez with one good arm, that really wouldn't be much of a fight, as "Canelo" would have no problem beating Kirkland with one good arm.

If Kirkland wants to make a seven-figure payday, then he should first get his shoulder healthy before trying to sign any fight. Then he must take on a top junior middleweight in the division to prove he is still the same fighter after the surgery.

Then, and only then, should Kirkland begin to negotiate a new fight with Alvarez and try to land the biggest payday of his career, not when he is half the fighter he can be, fresh off a major surgery.

By way of Twitter, Steve Carp of the Las Vegas Journal broke the news that Saul Alvarez is again without an opponent for his Sept. 15 date, after James Kirkland injured his shoulder in training this morning.

Kirkland was set to replace Paul Williams (41-2, 27 KO) after Williams' unfortunate motorcycle accident paralyzed him from the waist down.

Either man would have been the toughest test yet to Alvarez's undefeated record of 40 victories, one draw and 29 of those victories ending within the distance.

With Kirkland and Williams unable to compete, Alvarez has one choice left, according to an earlier statement by his management, and that is undefeated WBA regular champ Austin Trout (24-0, 14 KO).

Trout faces Delvin Rodriguez (26-5-1, 14 KO) tomorrow in Carson, California. Should Trout defeat Rodriguez in impressive fashion, he could become Alvarez's next opponent.

The news-breaking tweets are below:

James Kirkland injured his shoulder while training this a.m. and has pulled out of his Sept. 15 fight vs. Canelo Alvarez at MGM in Vegas.

— Steve Carp (@stevecarprj) June 1, 2012

Kirkland's manager Cameron Dunkin confirmed the news. "He's absolutely sick about it." Kirkland was scheduled to make around $3 million.

— Steve Carp (@stevecarprj) June 1, 2012

It's been expected to be announced for a few days now, but according to ESPN's Dan Rafael, Saul "Canelo" Alvarez is set to take on James Kirkland on Sept. 15 for the WBC Junior Middleweight title. 

Alvarez was all set to face Paul Williams on the same date, but Williams was involved in a motorcycle accident that will likely render him unable to walk. Hopefully Williams will beat the odds and recover and our thoughts are certainly with him. 

With Williams out, Kirkland is getting the opportunity of a lifetime against Canelo, not to mention the big time payday that goes along with it. Kirkland has been waiting a long time now for a title shot, and despite his lackluster effort in his last fight, in which he looked pretty bad (although he did injure his shoulder), Kirkland deserves a shot in my mind. 

He's a crowd pleasing fighter and always come in looking to be in top shape. Kirkland also knocked out the previously undefeated Alfredo Angulo in a fantastic fight. Angulo is a world class fighter so for Kirkland to KO him speaks volumes. 

While I favor Canelo in this matchup, due to his superior boxing ability, balance, and technique, which he showed against Shane Mosley on May 5, Kirkland is a live underdog. He can punch, and if Canelo gets into a brawl with Kirkland, it's a true 50/50 fight. Canelo has shown in the past that he isn't afraid to slug it out, and if he's smart he won't in this fight. 

However, Canelo may give in to the temptation to go toe to toe with the "Mandingo Warrior", and if he does it will definitely produce fireworks come Sept. 15. It could be the best fight of the year, and you can probably safely assume that it won't go the distance. Both guys are terrific punchers. 

Regardless of the outcome, this should be a good fight for the fans, as I can't see any way it can go but entertaining. Hopefully it will be accompanied by a solid PPV undercard as well. 

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