The
media was out in force for Saul “Canelo” Alvarez’s media workout on Wednesday
at actor/director Peter Berg’s TSB-44 boxing gym in Santa Monica, CA. By the
press release account and pictures viewed on the interwebs, Alvarez appeared to
this scribe focused and in great shape for his September 15 MGM Grand showdown (broadcast
on Showtime) with The Junior Welter who Could, Josesito Lopez.
“This
is going to be a tough fight and a great fight for the fans. Josesito has
a great chin. I feel I’ll have to work him little by little and throw my
best combinations to hurt him,” Alvarez told the assembled media at the press
event.
Alvarez
is not bothered by criticism that Lopez is a small, hand-picked opponent. Just
one fight ago, Lopez was a junior welterweight (albeit a tall and lanky one
with physical room to grow) before stepping up to 147 pounds and beating the
jaw off Victor Ortiz. In truth, Lopez is the taller man and has shown a
tremendous chin.
“He’s
my opponent and he’s definitely earned the opportunity for this fight,”
acknowledged Alvarez. True again, it’s rare that a fighter gets the payday originally
reserved for his more renowned opponent. Ortiz was set to face Alvarez
September 15 after Paul Williams crashed his motorcycle, resulting in paralysis
from the waist down. When Lopez upset Ortiz, he inherited the opponent slot in
one of the rare instances of boxing justice.
“He’s
durable; he’s dangerous and he’s coming to win. He’s coming to win and to
take my belt,” said Alvarez.
You
can argue against any fighter on a popular fighter’s résumé. Message boards and
now social media outlets get clogged with endless debates, tearing apart résumés
fight by fight. But it’s not always about who you face but how you look when
facing them. So far, Alvarez has been dominant in taking out the likes of Ryan
Rhodes, who many picked to give him trouble. Alfonso Gomez seemed to give
Alvarez trouble with his movement but midway through the fight, Alvarez began
landing on him enough to get a stoppage. Whomever he faces, Alvarez treats
every foe the same.
“There
are no weak opponents,” said Alvarez’s trainer, Jose “Chep” Reynoso. “We know
that Josesito is capable of causing damage. That’s why we have had 10
weeks of preparation for this fight. We don’t want the same thing to
happen to ‘Canelo’ that happened to Ortiz.”
The
Alvarez camp keeps things vanilla when talking to the press. Perhaps it’s the
questions they ask or maybe it speaks to how good his poker face is. Whatever the
case, Team Alvarez lets its namesake’s fists do the talking.
“This
has been a great camp from start to finish,” said Reynoso. “There haven’t been
any problems. ‘Canelo’ is very focused. He has tunnel vision.”
The
promotion, dubbed “Knockout Kings,” (featuring WBC world featherweight champion
Jhonny Gonzalez against Daniel Ponce de Leon, Marcos Maidana vs. Jesus Soto Karass
and Leo Santa Cruz against Eric Morel) promises to be a good one. All the
fighters on the card bring it. As an added bonus, Golden Boy Promotions is
going all UFC on us and adding a knockout bonus of $100,000.
“The
millions of fans watching live on Showtime will see a great night of non-stop
action and knockouts. The $100,000 bonus we’re giving to the top knockout
winner only gives more motivation to all the fighters,” said Golden Boy founder
Oscar De la Hoya. “Actually, this bonus is so enticing, I’m thinking about
maybe coming back.”
As
a young company, Golden Boy takes hard hits from the media as it learns and
progresses in this business. No facet gets hit harder than the matchmaking. On
this card, they absolutely got things right. Boxing loves drama and tension.
Adding 100K for the guy with the best knockout is in that neighborhood. Top
Rank promised something similar to the winner of the ill-fated Brandon Rios-Yuriorkis
Gamboa fight. After a long search for a main event opponent, Golden Boy is now
revealing this new wrinkle.
“You
know, Jhonny Gonzalez is thinking the bonus the way he fights,” De la Hoya
said, likely with a smile. “Ponce de Leon, ‘Canelo,’ it’s hard to pick who’s going
to be the eventual winner. Every fighter on this card possesses tremendous
punching power and they can all lay down the hammer and it will be ‘Goodnight’
for their opponents when they do.”
You
can say what you want about Golden Boy not moving off the September 15 Mexican
Independence Day date (rumor has it, down the street at the Thomas and Mack
Center, rival promoter Top Rank is doing a show on the same night) but you
cannot complain about this card. From start to finish, it promises action and
potential knockouts.
“Every
fight from top to bottom is going to be exciting. I expect them all to end
by knockout. They’re all amazing matchups – the matchmaking was crucial to
this card and I feel we did a great job,” praised De la Hoya.
“I’m
not even thinking of the $100,000 knockout bonus. I just want to win
convincingly for all my fans. I’m dedicating this fight to them,” Alvarez said.
“My sole focus is on September 15. Fighting on Mexican Independence Day
weekend is a very big responsibility for me. I’m relaxed and I feel no
pressure. It’s different for me now than it used to be. I don’t have
as much private time to myself; people know me and recognize me but I fight for
the people, my fans.”
Tickets
priced at $400, $300, $150, $50 and $25, not including applicable service
charges and taxes, are on now available for purchase. Ticket sales are
limited to 10 per person.
There
are also some internet deals being advertised by the MGM. Check it out.
