The boxing world was abuzz when rumors broke that Top Rank Promotions boss Bob Arum and Golden Boy founder Oscar De La Hoya were chatting each other up and discussing a possible Canelo Alvarez vs. Manny Pacquiao fight.
Canelo, Lara best 154-lb. fighters besides Mayweather?
Such a fight could possibly end the "Cold War" in boxing between promotions and open doors to big fights that are currently unable to be made. "Anything's possible. That's one of the reasons I was extending the olive branch. The fans want to see these kinds of fights," De La Hoya told the Los Angeles Times.
Floyd Mayweather Jr. vs. Manny Pacquiao is the super fight that never happened, largely due to promotional disputes between Mayweather and Arum. The next best option is Alvarez, and while Mayweather won't fight Manny, he added his own two cents on the proposed battle.
Oscar De La Hoya, Bob Arum ending boxing Cold War?
I don't think Pacquiao and Canelo are going to fight. Me, personally, I don't think so," Mayweather said at his gym in Las Vegas. "If that fight was to happen, I choose Canelo to win. But I don't think the fight is going to happen."
Pacquiao impressed in his last two fights vs. Brandon Rios and Timothy Bradley, while Canelo will have to get through Erislandy Lara on July 12 to keep interest in the bout at its peak.
Beating Lara may not be a simple task-even Golden Boy CEO Richard Schaefer called the matchup a 50-50 proposition. Great fight. Great Matchup. It's a 50-50 fight," Schaefer told RingTV in an e-mail. "The two best jr. middleweights not named Mayweather, fighting each other."
Lara's last two victories have been against Austin Trout and Alfredo Angulo, who are also past conquests of Canelo's. While Alvarez had a tough bout with Trout and easily dispatched Angulo, Lara was floored twice by "El Perro" before breaking his orbital bone and forcing a stoppage.
Against Trout, Lara outclassed him and set the stage for the July 12 meeting.
Can the two sides make a superfight or are Floyd's doubts valid? Tell us! @SportsWN
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