Canelo Alvarez grew frustrated with delays from Miguel Cotto's camp in talks for a May 2 fight and walked away from the negotiating table. Golden Boy president Oscar De La Hoya said the fight was dead, and the Alvarez camp looks like they've moved on to James Kirkland for a fight to be televised on HBO.
Some boxing officials are calling the move a "game of chicken" on the part of De La Hoya, and believe the Kirkland fight is not only pliable in terms of the date, but could be tossed aside if Cotto returns to talk.
De La Hoya has already said that Alvarez would give up his coveted May 2 date if Floyd Mayweather Jr. agrees to fight Manny Pacquiao on May 2, and it is much easier to shift a non-pay-per-view card, which a fight vs. Kirkland would be.
Cotto is believed to be Mayweather's primary backup plan if talks with Pacquiao don't come to fruition-which has been the case since the mid-2000s. If Mayweather and Pacquiao do shock the boxing world and agree to a bout in the near future though, these officials think the door is open for Cotto to re-open negotiations with Alvarez.
When the two sides walked away from talks, Cotto's side talked amiably about De La Hoya and Golden Boy.
"It's perfectly fine with us. We gave it a good-faith try and we couldn't do it. There are no ill feelings at all; it's OK. It's financial, obviously, and had they had more time to negotiate, there was a possibility that we could reach a deal and there as a possibility that we didn't. But it's their right and their decision if they needed to move," Cotto's adviser Gaby Penagaricano said.
Often times failed negotiations lead to bad blood between promoters in boxing, which in turn creates roadblocks for fan-pleasing fights. In this case, Penagaricano's tone leaves the door open for a fight down the road, or even sooner than that should Mayweather and Pacquiao come together.
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