Oscar De La Hoya: 'Nobody wants to fight Canelo'; Hearn: Pay more
Canelo Alvarez is a cash cow, meaning he generates a gaudy amount of money for everyone around him. That includes his opponents. So why then is he still without a dance partner for his annual May fight date?
Golden Boy Promotion’s CEO Oscar De La Hoya, Alvarez’s promoter, says prospective opponents are afraid to fight him. Eddie Hearn of Matchroom Boxing says De La Hoya isn’t offering enough money.
De La Hoya expressed his incredulity in an interview during the DAZN broadcast of the Ryan Garca-Francisco Fonseco card Friday night. Recently, reports have circulated that Billy Joe Saunders and Callum Smith, the presumed front-runners to fight Alvarez on May 2, rejected offers from De La Hoya.
“It’s funny because everybody talks a big game,” De La Hoya said. “I want Canelo. I can beat Canelo. Well that’s BS. Nobody wants to fight Canelo. They’re all afraid of him. He is the superstar in boxing. And if you fight him, you’ll make the most money. What’s the problem? Pull the trigger.”
Saunders and Smith are still engaged in negotiations, according to The Athletic.
The initial offers reportedly fell short of what either fighter wanted to fight Alvarez. Recent Alvarez opponents Daniel Jacobs and Sergey Kovalev earned in the neighborhood of $12 million, a gargantuan purse compared to their typical paydays. It’s not a stretch to think that both Saunders and Smith are angling for a similar financial package.
“I’ve offered B.J. Saunders a fight, and he’s balking at it,” De La Hoya said. “I’ve offered Smith a fight, and he’s balking at it. I have four other guys that I can negotiate with and talk to. If you guys don’t take it, we’re moving on to somebody else. But [Alvarez] will fight in May.”
Promoter Eddie Hearn, who handles both British fighters, suggested that De La Hoya needs to up his offers.
“There is a market rate that has been established, unfortunately for Golden Boy,’’ Hearn told Sky Sports. “Callum and Billy Joe are not even asking for that market rate.
“I don’t know which one Canelo prefers. But I do know both Callum and Billy Joe want the fight. The one who gets the fight? Probably the one who takes it for the least money.’’
Hearn went on: “Canelo has to fight a credible guy. Callum and Billy Joe are world champions. They aren’t just being picked off a list. It is a lot of money. but it is less than what you have paid everybody else. We feel the same about [heavyweight champion] Anthony Joshua’s opponents.
“The market has changed, and guys are demanding.”
In the end, the bucks stops with De La Hoya. He knows he is fighting against the clock to consummate a deal for his most important client.
“Time is running out,” he told DAZN. “I have until Sunday … or Monday the latest or I’m moving on.”