By Miguel Rivera
Mexican veteran Juan Manuel Marquez is hoping that his countryman Saul "Canelo" Alvarez (48-1-1, 34 KOs) goes through the most sought after fight in boxing by taking on IBF, IBO, WBA, WBC middleweight champion Gennady Golovkin (36-0, 33 KOs) next September, during Mexican Independence Day weekend.
Marquez, a former four division world champion, views Canelo as the likely candidate to become the next Mexican great - but in order to secure that status Canelo will have to fight and beat Golovkin, says Marquez.
There are ongoing discussions to stage that fight for next September - provided both boxers continue to win.
Canelo is currently in talks for a catch-weight bout with fellow Mexican superstar Julio Cesar Chavez Jr. on May 6th. Golovkin is scheduled to defend his titles against mandatory challenger Daniel Jacobs on March 18th at Madison Square Garden in New York City.
This year Canelo's reputation took a beating after he stepped away from a promise to fight Golovkin in the fall.
After his knockout of Amir Khan in May, he went face to face with Golovkin and accepted his challenge for a fall fight. A few days later, Canelo went in another direction when vacated the WBC middleweight title, and later moved back to the junior middleweight division to fight Liam Smith for the WBO title in September.
At the moment the two sides are attempting to reach an understand on the financial aspects of the deal.
"Look, in the case of Canelo, who is taking the post [as the next Mexican superstar]. He is a good fighter, but still he does not convince a lot of people. I think if he defeats Gennady Golovkin - it will be his final step to dispel doubts and, yes, convince fans. A lot of people do not believe in him because they feel the people who guide him have manipulated his career," Marquez told Victor Bustos.
