Canelo, All-Star Boxing, Golden Boy Mediation Set, 9/26

By Jake Donovan

Saul ‘Canelo’ Alvarez returning to HBO wasn’t the only stroll down memory lane involving the Mexican superstar. An ongoing lawsuit filed by former promoter All-Star Boxing has resurfaced, with a mediation date set for Friday, September 26 in Miami Dade County, Florida.

The session comes in the wake of Alvarez’ legal team having been granted a postponement in the trial, which has now been pushed back and due to take place on December 8 in a Miami Dade County courthouse. The move gives Alvarez enough time to proceed with his next ring appearance, which is tentatively slated for December 6 to air on HBO.

Golden Boy has yet to secure an opponent or hosting venue for the fight. Plans called for a headliner in San Antonio, but the December 6 date poses a conflict as the Alamodome is playing host to all festivities related to the annual Rock & Roll Marathon, while the NBA’s San Antonio Spurs have a home game at AT&T Center.

Even if they wanted to risk riding out the trial while fighting at a later date, moving back his ring appearance is an unlikely option. Top Rank has a tentative hold on December 13, having been granted permission to host an event in Las Vegas as plans call for a possible showdown between Tim Bradley and Diego Chaves.

HBO is already booked solid for the month of November, and rarely extends its boxing schedule beyond the second weekend of December.

All-Star Boxing first filed the lawsuit in Jan. ’11, naming Alvarez and Golden Boy Promotions as co-defendants. The Florida-based company signed Alvarez in Sept. ’08, signing the then-unbeaten rising prospect to a four-year deal, with the option to extend had he won a championship during that period.

Alvarez did win a title during that stretch, claiming a vacant belt at 154 lb. in a 12-round win over Matthew Hatton in March ’11.

By then, he was touted as the property of Golden Boy Promotions, with the relationship growing strong as early as 2010. All-Star Boxing had promoted Alvarez’ past nine fights to that point, beginning with an Oct. ’08 points win over Larry Mosley—marking his U.S. television debut with the fight airing on Telefutura (now UniMas)—and the last being a Dec. ’09 win over Lanardo Tyner, claiming to have paid the boxer fight purses in excess of $180,000.

The ongoing lawsuit hasn’t at all slowed Alvarez’ progress. He has fought 16 times since beating Tyner, none including All-Star Boxing in the promotion. Eleven of the 16 bouts have come since the case was first opened.

The upcoming mediation requires the presence of All-Star Boxing (to be represented by Felix ‘Tuto’ Zabala Jr., who runs day-to-day operations of the company), Alvarez and a representative from Golden Boy Promotions. Should the two sides not be able to reach an agreement during the session, the case will officially go to trial.

Jake Donovan is the Managing Editor of BoxingScene.com, as well as the Records Keeper for the Transnational Boxing Ratings Board and a member of Boxing Writers Association of America. Twitter: @JakeNDaBox