By Dan Ambrose: Eddie Hearn says he is already in talks with Canelo Alvarez for a rematch with Dmitry Bivol in 2023, provided the undefeated WBA light heavyweight champion successfully defends against Gilberto ‘Zurdo’ Ramirez on November 5 in Abu Dhabi.
For the fans who don’t understand why Canelo (58-2-2, 39 KOs) wants a rematch with Bivol (21-0, 10 KOs), because if he doesn’t face him, he’s going to have huge pressure to defend against his mandate. WBC David Benavidez at 168.
With the way Benavidez (26-0, 23 KOs) fights, there’s an excellent chance he’ll force a stoppage from Canelo in the second half after he runs out of gas. Taking a rematch with Bivol is infinitely better for Canelo than fighting Benavidez, and it gives him an excuse to keep deflecting the 25-year-old.
The worst thing he could have for Canelo in a rematch with Bivol is that he loses a 12-round unanimous decision and the WBA 175-pound champion makes him look foolish. If Canelo is lucky, he will get the kind of score from his previous fight with Bivol in which all three judges oddly scored the contest 115-113 x 3.
The fight seemed more one-sided than that, and I would really be exaggerating if I said that Canelo won two rounds because Bivol was headbutting him the entire fight. The punches Canelo threw were intercepted on Bivol’s arms and gloves, and only one rare shot got through.
“Yes, absolutely,” Eddie Hearn told Boxing Social when asked if Canelo Alvarez would re-sign with Matchroom. “We are already talking about the Dmitry Bivol fight. Let’s see if he wins in Abu Dhabi [against Gilberto ‘Zurdo’ Ramirez]but we have a great relationship,” Hearn said.
It’s unclear why it would matter if Bivol beats Ramirez or not when it comes to the Canelo rematch. Does Canelo want to avenge his loss to Bivol or not? It seems to me that Canelo is looking for a way out of the Bivol fight. If Canelo does that, like I said, there will be a lot of pressure on him to fight Benavidez.
Canelo will probably take an easy fight against John Ryder in the UK rather than risk fighting Bivol.
“We have done five fights with Canelo Alvarez. So hopefully we’ll carry on for the rest of his career,” Hearn said.
