Notebook: Canelo returns to Miami in much different position than 1st fight there

Lopez-Kambosos update, key heavyweight fight ordered, more

Had there not been a coronavirus pandemic unified super middleweight world champion Canelo Alvarez probably would be preparing to fight in Las Vegas this weekend.

However, with no crowds allowed there, Alvarez will instead make his mandatory defense against Avni Yildirim on Saturday night (DAZN) at Hard Rock Stadium in Miami, where a crowd of about 15,000 will be permitted in the NFL stadium that is home to the Miami Dolphins.

But as much as Alvarez loves to fight in Las Vegas, he is pleased to be boxing in Miami for the second time in his career.

“I feel really excited to be in Miami for a second occasion and in this position,” Alvarez said. “I feel very happy. To have 15,000 people there in the stadium, that truly makes me feel very motivated and very excited.”

Alvarez, 30, returned to Miami this week but as a superstar four-division champion many consider the No. 1 boxer in the world pound-for-pound. It was a lot different the only other time he fought in the Sunshine State.

That was back on Dec. 5, 2008 on a Telemundo-televised card at the Miccosukee Indian Gaming resort in Miami. Then 18, Alvarez was 22-0-1 and a little-known prospect that had come from Mexico to fight in the United States for the second time.

He faced Raul Pinzon, who was 16-1 at the time, in a regional welterweight title bout some 21 pounds lighter than the weight limit for Saturday’s fight. Alvarez’s ring appearance didn’t last long as he blitzed Pinzon in just 2 minutes, 30 seconds for the first-round knockout win.

Thirteen years later, Alvarez (54-1-2, 36 KOs) is back to face heavy underdog Yildirim (21-2, 12 KOs), 29, of Turkey, in a fight some might not expect to last much longer than the fight with Pinzon.

But with his return to Miami, Alvarez hopes to give the fans an exciting performance before moving on to a three-belt unification fight with Billy Joe Saunders on May 8.

“I feel very motivated to be in Miami and have this fight and to put on a great show for the people there because I don’t just represent Mexico, I represent all Latinos,” Alvarez said. “I like everything about Miami and I am very happy to be here, it is an honor to fight at Hard Rock Stadium. I feel very excited, very happy to open another door in order to have another home for my fights. I really feel very happy.”

When Alvarez easily outpointed Callum Smith to claim two 168-pound titles on Dec. 19, the fight was at the Alamodome in San Antonio, where a limited number of spectators was also allowed. Of course, Alvarez would love to fill a stadium or arena as he usually does, but he is pleased nonetheless to be able to have some spectators attend.

“They only let us put 15,000 people in because of the pandemic, but with that we are fine,” Alvarez said. “Last time in San Antonio it was around 12,000 and the stadium sounded like it was full. Let's hope that normalcy will arrive soon, and the stadium can be filled, but with 15,000 I feel very good, and if there were 1,000 it would be the same. The support of the people is incredible, and I feel very grateful.

“You do feel the vibe of the fans when they are yelling and that motivates you much more, but you have to get into your head that in the end you are the only one up in the ring. I always prepare 100 percent.”

Lopez-Kambosos update

The IBF purse bid for the fight between unified lightweight world champion Teofimo Lopez Jr. (16-0, 12 KOs) and mandatory challenger George Kambosos Jr. (19-0, 10 KOs), which was scheduled for last Thursday but postponed due to a snow storm that hit New Jersey, has been rescheduled for this Thursday at 12 p.m. ET at the IBF offices in Springfield, New Jersey, with some attending via video conference.

The IBF notified its registered promoters about the rescheduling on Monday via email. The two sides could still make a deal until 15 minutes before the bids are unsealed but that seems unlikely.

The reason a purse bid is needed is not due to the inability of Lopez promoter Top Rank and Kambosos promoter Lou DiBella to make a deal, which is typically why a purse bid is held. In this case, it is because of the inability of Top Rank to make a deal with Lopez.

They are far apart on the money with Top Rank offering him his minimum purse of $1.25 million and Lopez seeking $5.5 million, sources told Fight Freaks Unite.

Lopez is entitled to 65 percent of the winning bid and Kambosos gets 35 percent. If Top Rank doesn’t win the purse bid it means Lopez would be leaving Top Rank broadcaster ESPN for the bout, although he would be back for his next fight, win or lose, as he still has about three years left on his Top Rank promotional contract.

Hunter-Hrgovic ordered

Heavyweight contenders Michael Hunter (19-1-1, 13 KOs), 32, of Las Vegas, and Filip Hrgovic (12-0, 10 KOs), 28, of Croatia, were ordered to meet in a title elimination fight by the IBF on Tuesday. Should the fight happen the winner will become a mandatory challenger for three-belt titlist Anthony Joshua.

In the letter sent to representatives for both fighters, a copy of which Fight Freaks Unite obtained, it gave the camps until Friday to let the IBF know in writing if they want to participate in the process.

“In the event we do not hear from you in writing by 5 p.m. EST on February 26, 2021 we will assume that you do not wish to participate in this eliminator process and proceed down the list of rankings to the next available contender,” the IBF letter said.

The IBF also said if either fighter declines to negotiate his ranking will drop below No. 10 for at least six months and that neither fighter can take an intervening fight until the elimination process is concluded.

Hrgovic, a 2016 Olympic bronze medalist, has been close to a deal to fight Martin Bakole but the eliminator would trump that if Hrgovic elects to participate. Hrgovic is coming off a one-sided fifth-round knockout of veteran Rydell Booker in November.

Hunter, whose lone loss came by decision challenging Oleksandr Usyk for his world title in 2017, fought to a draw with Alexander Povetkin in December 2019 and, after a year out of the ring, returned to knock out Shawn Laughery in the third round in December.

Wallin aims for bigger fight

Heavyweight contender Otto Wallin (22-1, 14 KO), a southpaw from Sweden, was pleased with his dominating decision win  -- 118-110, 117-111 and 116-112 -- over former two-time world title challenger Dominic Breazeale on Showtime on Saturday night and hopes it will boost him toward a major fight.

“Breazeale was a good step-up fight for me,” Wallin said. “I stuck to my game plan and executed effectively. I knew going into the fight what I needed to do and took advantage of my strengths. I’m happy with how I performed against a big name and that I was able to do so on a big platform like Showtime, so the world could see for itself that I am a force in this division.”

Wallin won his second fight in a row since a competitive decision loss to lineal champion Tyson Fury in September 2019.

“My ultimate goal is to be the heavyweight champion of the world, and to that end, I won’t back down from any challenge standing in my way,” Wallin said. “I feel I can out-box any big man in the sport. Obviously, I would love a shot at the big three, Fury, (Anthony) Joshua or (Deontay) Wilder, as well as (Andy) Ruiz, but I don’t see anyone above me in the rankings that gives me pause. I am strong, smart and fast, and I’m ready to step up and be recognized as one of the best heavyweights in the world.”

Quick hits

Red-hot super middleweight prospect Edgar Berlanga (16-0, 16 KOs), who has won all of his fights by first-round knockout, will fight in co-feature of the Top Rank Boxing on ESPN card topped by featherweight world titlist Emanuel Navarrete’s first defense against Christopher Diaz on April 24, according to Berlanga manager Keith Connolly. Berlanga, 23, of Brooklyn, New York, will face Demond Nicholson (23-3-1, 20 KOs), 28, of Laurel, Maryland, in an eight- or 10-rounder. Nicholson has been stopped in two of his losses but has won five in a row and faced far better opposition than Berlanga. According to Top Rank, the site is not set. It could either be inside the bubble of the conference center at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas or in Kissimmee, Florida, where some fans would be permitted to attend.

---

MTK Global and Rick Mirigian announced they have signed junior welterweight Batyrzhan Jukembayev, 29, of Kazakhstan, with MTK serving as adviser and Mirigian as manager. They are working with several fighters together. The Manny Robles-trained Jukembayev (18-0, 14 KOs), a southpaw, has had all of his pro fights in Canada but has moved to the United States, where he will now fight.

Show and tell

Seidman Productions, which has produced merchandise for significant fights for decades, has for the past few years been doing an ongoing card set that has reached 56 so far. In many of its programs over the past few years there are glossy cards of fighters starring on that night’s show inserted into the program. Full disclosure: I assist with the set and write the card backs. It’s a terrific set and includes many of today’s top stars and champions, including Canelo Alvarez, Gennadiy Golovkin, Tyson Fury, Deontay Wilder, Manny Pacquiao, Roman “Chocolatito” Gonzales, Errol Spence Jr., Shawn Porter, Ryan Garcia, Danny Garcia, Mikey Garcia, Vasiliy Lomachenko, Oleksandr Usyk, Shakur Stevenson, Terence Crawford, Keith Thurman and Daniel Jacobs. There are also cards of Miguel Cotto, Timothy Bradley Jr., Andre Ward and Bernard Hopkins from before they retired. Several fighters have their rookie card in the set, including Oscar Valdez, who fought a masterpiece in a dominating 10th-round knockout of Miguel Berchelt to win the WBC junior lightweight title last Saturday. The Valdez card was part of the program from his memorable 2018 battle with Scott Quigg, whose card is also in the program. Here’s a Valdez card from my collection.

Canelo-Yildirim photo: Ed Mulholland/Matchroom Boxing; Lopez-Lomachenko photo: Mikey Williams/Top Rank; Wallin photo: Amanda Westcott/Showtime