Canelo Alvarez: Alfonso Gomez Mentioned, But What About Mayorga and Money?

by Scott Christ on Jun 22, 2011 3:26 PM EDT in Boxing News Analysis

Ricardo Mayorga wasn't paid much to get smashed by Miguel Cotto, so what's with the talk of him being too expensive for Canelo Alvarez? (Photo by Al Bello/Getty Images)

Alfonso Gomez has been mentioned as another possible September opponent for Saul "Canelo" Alvarez, by Alvarez's trainer, but I wanted to point out something here. This is from Notifight.com's Jose Luis Camarillo, via BoxingScene.com:

A few days ago, Alvarez's manager Jose "Chep" Reynoso mentioned former champion Ricardo Mayorga as a possible candidate, but Gomez would certainly come at a much cheaper price.

And this is from a Dan Rafael article on the same subject, from yesterday:

"I know one name mentioned was Mayorga, but he and his promoter [Don King] might price themselves out," Schaefer said.

What I want to mention here is that Mayorga's purse for his March 12 fight with Miguel Cotto was $50,000. While I'm sure he got some portion of the PPV revenue for that fight, it probably wasn't much, and plus that show wasn't some big seller anyway. All in all, Mayorga didn't leave with a huge amount of money by any means, and $50,000. For reference, Mike Alvarado made a $50,000 purse for his Pacquiao vs Mosley PPV opening bout. Mayorga may be notorious, but he's not making the big bucks these days, so one of two things could be happening here:

Golden Boy isn't keen on matching Alvarez against Mayorga, who for all his faults can still thump a little, and Alvarez is starting to hear some criticism for avoiding punchers.
Golden Boy expects Mayorga and King won't be keen on it, and figures they'll ask for a lot more money than they got to face Cotto, who is a veteran star instead of a kid.

I'm not trying to accuse anyone of "ducking" anyone here, or looking for a way to, but the "Mayorga might ask for too much money" thing comes off funny when you realize the money -- or lack thereof -- Mayorga made in his last fight against Miguel Cotto.

As for Gomez, he's promoted by Top Rank so that would be tricky, and he's a welterweight. It's not that he's a bad fighter, but we've seen Alvarez beat guys at that level. Alvarez can't get away with "he's young!" forever, and the skeptics are going to start coming out. I'm a lot higher on Alvarez than I am on Adrien Broner, but Broner is only a year older than Alvarez, and has fought Daniel Ponce de Leon and Jason Litzau this year, which is every bit as good as Matthew Hatton and Ryan Rhodes. Some of what Alvarez does is amazing given his youth. But some is not amazing, but the matchups aren't really amazing, just better than average. And since he's so good, and they're calling him a "champion," stay-busy type fights are going to meet some criticism. That's just how it's going to be.

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Comments

Canelo’s position is interesting. You can argue he’s still a developing fighter and that he’s not ready for the elite just yet, but then you look at his record and accolades he’s getting and you can’t help but wonder when he’s going to take his step up. Mayorga might not be the best fight for him, though I don’t know the 154 division that well so I’m not sure who might be a good opponent for him.

by The Twillness on Jun 22, 2011 4:04 PM EDT reply actions

Austin Trout has been mentioned by Brick and by me (although I did that on Twitter) and he makes sense. He’s cheap, he beat Canelo’s brother, and he’s good. Anyone who hasn’t seen him beat David Lopez yet should check that out. I think you can make an argument that Trout is top five in the division right now.

There are a lot of people out there. It’s a deep division with plenty of credible fighters but no great fighters (well, I think Cotto’s a great fighter, but I don’t know that he’s great at 154).

Bad Left Hook
"To the town of Agua Fria rode a stranger one fine day..."

by Scott Christ on Jun 22, 2011 4:12 PM EDT up reply actions

I forgot about Trout, I was meaning to get that Lopez fight but it slipped my mind.

by The Twillness on Jun 22, 2011 4:36 PM EDT up reply actions

What u boxin zombies dont realize is fans just want to see the kid fight. they are not 2 concerned with s oppostion. for d most part when d boxin world tells the casuals to tune in to the big event it turns a dud. ala pac vs mosley. alexander vs bradley. mayweather vs evryone… so lets stop complaining and let the kid get some tv time and build up his resume.

by mrmrec on Jun 22, 2011 5:21 PM EDT via mobile reply actions

As far as the 1st criticism that some may be saying (avoiding punchers)……………..um, wasn’t that why Rhodes was considered dangerous? Not a huge puncher, but dangerous.

I hope this kid doesn’t get the “Fernando Vargas” treatment.

by DPlainview on Jun 22, 2011 6:02 PM EDT reply actions

Canelo is such a major star already, he competition has become almost secondary. We are watching the nurturance and cultivation of celebrity and brand embodied in a red-headed kid with some preternaturally mature skills and poise.

He will continue to be ‘brought along’ like a prize race horse, slowly but gradually increasing his record and popularity. Certain calculated risks will be taken in matching him but do not expect true tests in the immediate future.

There is a fortune to be made and/or lost depending in the right decisions. So yes, he has been and will be protected because his long term future prospects and profitability far outweigh short term risk.

The kid is still vulnerable and, if matched too soon with men such as Cotto or Martinez, I would not be at all stunned to see his beaten or even stopped. I would however be pleasantly stunned if any of those opponents were chosen sooner than late next year.

Got to protect that investment. There’s gold in that thar kid.

"Silence is golden when you can't think of a good answer"
---- Muhammed Ali

by pakinpower on Jun 23, 2011 3:21 AM EDT reply actions