_1651990243.jpg)
Eddie Hearn is apparently confident that Canelo Alvarez and Dmitry Bivol will partake in a rematch later this year.
What’s more, the Matchroom head has an inkling the proposed return bout will be staged not at the light heavyweight limit as last time but at 168, where Alvarez holds all four major belts.
Russia’s Bivol defeated Mexico’s Alvarez by unanimous decision last spring in a defense of Bivol’s WBA light heavyweight belt. The win was considered one of the most impressive upsets of 2022, and it put Bivol firmly in the conversation of elite prizefighters. Bivol was BoxingScene.com’s Fighter of the Year.
Bivol has typically greeted calls for a rematch with Alvarez practically with contempt, shrugging it off in favor of an undisputed light heavyweight with Artur Beterbiev, who owns the WBC, WBO, and IBF titles. (Beterbiev will defend those belts against his mandatory challenger, Anthony Yarde, on Jan. 28 in London.)
But Bivol has seemingly warmed to the idea of an Alvarez match recently, saying he would be much more intrigued if it were to take place at 168. Hearn has confirmed that Alvarez would prefer for the rematch to occur at 175.
Nevertheless, in a recent interview Hearn indicated that he believes there is a good chance that Bivol’s preference may win out in the end.
“Canelo Alvarez in an ideal world for us will return in May with — I think it’s disrespectful to call it a comeback fight — and I believe he will fight his mandatory challenger, which is John Ryder, the interim world champion,” Hearn told iFL TV. “That fight can take place in America, could be UK, could be Middle East.
“And then I’m gonna put my neck on the line and say that Canelo Alvarez will fight Bivol for the undisputed championship at 168. There’s a lot of work to be done but Dmitry Bivol is up for the challenge. Dmitry Bivol is about legacy. He has a chance if he beats Canelo Alvarez to then fight Beterbiev in his next fight for the undisputed at 175.”
Alvarez is coming off surgery on his left wrist. His last outing in the ring was in September, when he defeated bitter enemy Gennadiy Golovkin in the third bout of their storied rivalry.
Bivol was last seen in the ring in November, when he dominated Gilberto Ramirez en route to a unanimous points win.