Top Rank Promotions CEO Bob Arum recently said that Manny Pacquiao could face Saul "Canelo" Alvarez, but retired referee Joe Cortez is not too excited about the proposed fight.
Arum, whose company promotes Pacquiao, said in a recent interview with Fighthub that Pacquiao will be willing to face Alvarez in a catchweight fight if the Filipino boxing icon wins against Timothy Bradley on Saturday.
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"If Manny wins, you know, Manny is the kinda guy that doesn't care about how much more an opponent weighs," Arum said. "So Manny would be happy to go in, say, with Canelo, if Canelo beat Amir Khan. That would be a really good fight."
But while the Canelo-Alvarez fight will be a mouthwatering fight, especially for avid boxing fans, Cortez is convinced that it will be a mismatch because of Alvarez's size advantage. Canelo is very comfortable fighting at 154-155 pounds, while Pacquiao has been fighting as a 147-pounder in his recent bouts.
"Manny Pacquiao is a fighter who started as a junior flyweight and eventually became a world champion at 154 pounds," Cortez told ESPN Deportes via BoxingScene. "But Saul Alvarez is a natural 154-pound fighter. While it looks interesting on paper, the fact still remains that Canelo would have a significant physical advantage."
Cortez said that Arum is just trying to squeeze out one more big paycheck for Pacquiao, knowing that the former pound-for-pound king will retire soon. However, the Hall of Fame referee warned that Pacquiao will just get seriously hurt if Arum and his camp decide to pursue the bout.
Alvarez, who owns a 46-1-1 record with 32 knockout victories, will defend his World Boxing Council middleweight title against Amir Khan on May 7 at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada.
Golden Boy Promotions president Oscar De La Hoya recently said that they were interested in facing Pacquiao before, but they have other plans for Alvarez if he successfully defends his title against Khan.
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Alvarez is continuously being linked to a showdown with Gennady Golovkin, who is the mandatory challenger to Canelo's WBC middleweight title. Golovkin, who has a perfect 34-0 record, is also the World Boxing Association, International Boxing Federation and International Boxing Organization middleweight champion.
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