By Norm Frauenheim-
Okay, we’ve all seen it. Canelo Alvarez and Julio Cesar Chavez Jr. shook hands on a bet that begs another wager.
Real?
Phony?
Promotional show?
Odds are, it’s the third – all for show. Odds are, neither fighter could afford the payoff. Let’s say the purses for their HBO pay-per-view bout on May 6 at Las Vegas T-Mobile Arena are close to what each fighter says they are – $24 million for Canelo and $6 million for Chavez.
Is either fighter going to throw away that kind of a guarantee on something as fickle as a lucky punch, or a lousy judge, or inadvertent slip on a slick stretch of canvas? Didn’t think so.
And what trainer, or manager, or bucket guy, or promoter, or gofer would continue working for a fighter who just bet his whole purse? These guys work for a living, too. They need their piece of the purse just to eat. They’ll get an attorney before they let this bet rob them of their livelihoods.
In the wake of their handshake in front of television camera at a Univision studio Wednesday in Mexico City, Chavez Jr. – of all people — sounded like the grown-up in what appeared to be a spontaneous moment brought on by Canelo’s sudden willingness to risk it all.
“Let’s see what the exact terms of the bet are going to be,’’ Chavez Jr. said through an interpreter who might have been a lawyer.
Meanwhile, Bob Bennett, executive director of the Nevada State Athletic Commission, sounded skeptical about the bet in comments to the Los Angeles Times.
“I’m not sure out deputy attorney general would even allow it,’’ Bennett told the Times.
At least, he wouldn’t allow it in Nevada. But who’s to say that they couldn’t live up to the handshake-seen-across-the world, days after the bout and after both have returned to Mexico?
The cynic in me says there are better bets on what really could happen.
To wit: There’s a pretty good chance that Chavez Jr.’s purse will be at least $1 million lighter on the day before opening bell. According to contract terms, he pays $1 million to Canelo for every pound he is over the 164.5-pound catch-weight. Chavez’ problems on the scale aren’t a secret.
To wit: There’s a pretty good chance Chavez Jr., a 4-1 underdog, gets frustrated late in a one-sided fight. With nothing to lose, he throws a low blow or an elbow, injuring Canelo in way that further delays the showdown with Gennady Golovkin. That’s a losing bet for a business that desperately needs Canelo-GGG in the wake of lousy 2016.
That said, Canelo-Chavez Jr. looks like a very good preliminary to this year main event. That handshake on a winner-take-all bet makes it all the more entertaining. It gets people talking about what they imagine boxing is all about.
Or should be all about.
Limbs are at risk. Their lives are at risk. But the money? Don’t bet on it.
