The controversy continues in the aftermath of Canelo Alvarez being stripped of his International Boxing Federation belt after failing to agree terms on a mandatory title defense.
Canelo, who also holds the World Boxing Association and World Boxing Council titles, was stripped of his IBF crown after negotiations for a fight with Sergiy Derevyanchenko fell through.
When the decision came down on Thursday, Canelo's promoter - Oscar De La Hoya of Golden Boy Promotions - was furious.
"We are extremely disappointed at the IBF for forcing the world's best fighter to relinquish his world title," said De La Hoya. "We offered his (Derevyanchenko's) team an unprecedented amount of money for a fighter of his limited stature and limited popularity, but the truth is that I'm now certain they never had any intention of making a deal," he said.
"But instead they wanted to force us to relinquish Canelo's belt. This is an insult to boxing and more importantly an insult to the boxing fans of the world."
Canelo, who won the IBF belt in May after beating Daniel Jacobs over twelve rounds, had been expected to fight Derevyanchenko in October after recently electing to skip his traditional September fight date.
Apparently, there had been a written agreement between the sanctioning body and Golden Boy matchmaker Robert Diaz - where both sides agreed that Canelo would be stripped if he was unable to reach a deal by the deadline.
But an angry Canelo took to social media on Friday, claiming that he was unaware of the agreement that caused him to get stripped.
“I'm very upset and ashamed (along with) my fans, to have been unfairly stripped of my belt by the IBF,” Alvarez (52-1-2, 35KOs) revealed through his verified social media accounts on Friday. “Especially, when I did not have the knowledge of the agreement that GBP matchmaker had signed.”
Not too long after Canelo made his statement, De La Hoya came out in defense of Diaz.
"I stand behind every single one of my soldiers during battle. Robert Diaz is the best matchmaker in the business. Golden Boy Boxing has been the best and top promoter for a reason, it’s called loyalty, hard work, intelligence, and FAMILY," De La Hoya stated.
And further support for Diaz, came from Golden Boy President Eric Gomez.
"Robert Diaz did nothing wrong. The IBF has been unfair to Canelo since he won the title in May. Oscar De La Hoya and I stand by Roberto 1000%," Gomez states.
With the title left vacant, Derevyanchenko is now set to enter negotiations with former champion Gennadiy Golovkin - with the winner coming away with the IBF crown.
