Canelo Alvarez could face David Benavidez in September after his current deal with Premier Boxing Champions was explained.
Manager and trainer Eddy Reynoso outlined the agreement with Al Haymon after weeks of speculation that Canelo could leave PBC over a failed Jermall Charlo fight. According to Reynoso, this was never the case.
Eventually, Canelo decided to face Jaime Munguia, but PBC would always be involved no matter who the Mexican superstar fought on May 4.
Canelo’s deal with PBC explained
“It was said many times that we left PBC,” Reynoso told ESPN Knockout. “We never left PBC, and we have the approval of Mr.Haymon if we can’t finalize anything with one of their fighters. We can also negotiate with any company. This is what we did, and PBC is also involved.
“We have a commitment to PBC in September. Sometimes they [PBC] don’t have the best fighters for Canelo, so we can talk with Eddie Hearn, Top Rank, any fighter, and the people of Saudi Arabia, too.”
Asked about facing Benavidez, Canelo quickly reminded the media present for his press conference with Munguia of the long list fans previously wanted him to face.
“Yeah, it always happens,” the super middleweight king pointed out. “It happened with Erislandy Lara, Austin Trout, Floyd Mayweather, Miguel Cotto, Gennady Golovkin, Daniel Jacobs, Callum Smith, and Billy Joe Saunders.
“At the end of the day, I beat practically all of them. If I beat Benavidez, they will say, ‘Oh, why don’t you face this other guy?’ Look at my history. I’ve done everything in boxing. I’ve done it all.”
Benavidez in September
Stephen Espinoza, who has worked with Canelo many times during his career, sees Benavidez as a feasible event to make for the fall.
“I think the door is still open in reality, but people want to slam the doors shut in declaring they know what’s going to happen,” said the former Showtime Boxing boss who now advises PBC.
“We’ve just seen all those people proven wrong again and again, and more recently, this one [Canelo vs Munguia]. So even if the Benavidez fight doesn’t happen now, I’m not ready to close the book. I’m not ready to stamp my feet and pout. I’m like all boxing fans, and I’d like to see that before Canelo exits boxing, but we’ve got time for that.
“I think the door will still open in September. Who knows?”
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