By Luis Sandoval
As soon as Floyd Mayweather announced his fight with Saul “Canelo” Alvarez being set for September 14th in Las Vegas, NV at the MGM Grand, it set the boxing world on fire and the fight has been a hot topic amongst fans and media alike.
Top Rank founder and CEO Bob Arum was in Beverly Hills today to announce the signing of his newest fighter Japanese gold medalist Ryota Murata and spoke to BoxingScene and Constantino Garcia regarding his thoughts on the fight.
“I think Canelo doesn’t have anywhere near the experience to fight a Mayweather. And the problem with Canelo and a lot of young fighters is they don’t have the stamina. They run out of gas. That’s what happened to him in the Austin Trout fight. Austin Trout didn’t know how to capitalize on it; Mayweather would. So I think Mayweather wins a decision or stops him late” said Arum.
Alvarez recorded the biggest win of his career when he defeated Austin Trout this past April but he appeared to be tire out during the mid rounds. Arum was asked if he felt Trout simply lacked the killer instinct to take advantage of a situation like that.
“I’m not questioning [his killer instinct]. When he saw the guy running out of gas -which he clearly did, the guy threw very few punches in a lot of rounds – he didn’t step on the pedal which was disappointing. But Mayweather is too smart for that” shared the hall of fame promoter.
While questions about Floyd’s age causing him to slow down have been put to rest after his dominant performance against Robert Guerrero last month, many still feel Alvarez may simply be too young and inexperienced to deal with a fighter of Floyd’s caliber. Bob Arum is one those people as he doesn’t give Alvarez much of a chance in this fight at this moment in Alvarez’s career.
“No, not now. If they had fought a year or two years from now, maybe it would be different. But Canelo just doesn’t have the speed or stamina to cope with Mayweather. Mayweather is a very good fighter” Arum would tell BoxingScene.
Despite Arum and Mayweather having a falling out, Arum didn’t hesitate to give Floyd the proper credit and calling him a great fighter. In closing, Arum was asked if he felt anyone at the moment could beat Mayweather. While he didn’t name anyone, he reiterated that Alvarez definitely isn’t one of the fighters that can do it.
“Remember as the years go on, things change so we’ll have to see [if anyone can beat Mayweather]. But off Mayweather’s last fight, Canelo doesn’t stand much of a chance”.
You can follow Luis Sandoval on Twitter @Truewest007. You can also tune in to BoxingScene Radio, Boxingscene’s official audio show every Tuesday from 6-8PM PST with hosts Ernest Gabion, Luis Sandoval, and Ryan Burton.
