Canelo Alvarez has no choice but to agree to rematch Dmitry Bivol at 168 lbs, as the Russian’s manager, Vadim Kornilov, made clear.
The Mexican was completely outboxed and dominated during his unanimous decision defeat to Bivol at 175 lbs.
It stifled Canelo’s bid to add another title in the light-heavyweight division after beating Sergey Kovalev, as all the talk turned to a rematch.
While Canelo has made it clear that he is looking to avenge his loss at that weight, Kornilov has suggested otherwise, given the ease with which Bivol ousted the Mexican.
And yet, whatever decision is taken comes with some risk. Bivol’s team knows that a defeat to Canelo at 175 lbs would scupper their plans for an undisputed fight with Artur Beterbiev.
Meanwhile, Canelo risks losing his undisputed status at 168 lbs if he comes second best, thus signaling a potential decline in his star power.
In his comments to Little Giant Boxing, Kornilov said: “One of those terms is Bivol wants to fight him at 168. It’s enticing for him to put all his titles on the line, and he doesn’t want any more excuses.
“Bivol wants it to be a fight where there are no more excuses. “Canelo said after the last fight, he went up in weight, but he’s done that before. Saying, ‘I made a mistake’…If all the terms come together, then I believe in it.”
Canelo faces a crunch moment moving forward, which is why he will be wanting to correct the Bivol loss.