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Home » Door firmly open for Canelo Alvarez v Callum Smith at Anfield Stadium

Door firmly open for Canelo Alvarez v Callum Smith at Anfield Stadium

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  • 3 min read

The recent deal which made Canelo Alvarez the top name at DAZN has had a big impact on the super-middleweight division.

Canelo’s decision to move up in weight to face Rocky Fielding in December has big repercussions for the current number one at 168 pounds.

Callum Smith, fresh from his superb victory in the World Boxing Super Series tournament, had previously been linked to a rematch with Fielding in 2019.

‘Mundo’ blasted out Fielding in less than a round at the Echo Arena back in 2015. The general consensus since then is that his old foe Fielding has improved massively.

Any second fight between the pair of Merseysiders has been majorly impacted by Fielding’s acceptance of the Canelo fight. Obviously, ‘Rocky from Stocky’ could never pass up the chance to face boxing’s number one earner (Floyd Mayweather aside), but the Liverpool man begins a huge underdog in New York.

Should Canelo come through Fielding at Madison Square Garden, as expected, the Mexican superstar would then overtake the Scouser in the running to oppose Smith at Anfield.

Promoter Eddie Hearn confirmed plans are in place earlier this month for Smith to defend his Ring Magazine belt at the famous stadium. A blueprint which by solidified by Liverpool City Council’s acceptance to stage concerts and boxing matches at the ground last month.

Hearn wants Smith to headline a mammoth event in May. And with Canelo potentially holding the WBA ‘Regular’ belt by then, a match-up between the pair would make the most sense.

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Purring at the prospect of Canelo being on board and in the same stable, Hearn said the middleweight king’s involvement with DAZN would have a massive effect.

“We joined up with DAZN, our biggest global boxing partners a few months ago. And when we give you our commitment, we give you our heart, we give you our blood.

“We had a mission to make sure the DAZN platform would work and be a success. We launched the platform with Anthony Joshua, the first show being live on DAZN. And now through Golden Boy and DAZN, they bring Canelo Saul Alvarez.

“This is a gamechanger for the world of boxing and the way boxing fans digest content. Things are about to change. The whole game is about to change,” he added.



It’s not one hundred percent that Canelo will stay at super-middleweight after the Fielding fight as a third fight with Gennady Golovkin is also in the frame.

Golovkin may well decide the time is right to head north himself in search of a second weight world title. Whilst Tom Loeffler will also need to negotiate a new TV deal for ‘GGG’.

HBO will leave boxing behind in 2019, and barring an offer from Showtime, every big name boxer will now be linked to signing with DAZN.