By Norm Frauenheim-
It’s a new way to watch and a new weight. But don’t look for a new Canelo Alvarez. He was a reliable revenue producer at super-welterweight and middleweight.
He also could be counted on to win.
In the ring.
And the ratings.
More of the same is the blueprint DAZN, Canelo and Golden Boy Promotions hope will play out in another chapter of a fighter who – at 28 – is still in his prime and presumably will be for several more years. What could go wrong?
Not much, at least not against a UK super-middleweight named Rocky Fielding for a WBA belt Saturday at New York’s Madison Square Garden in the first of 11 fights in the landmark deal he signed with the DAZN streaming service not long after his controversial rematch decision over Gennady Golovkin last September.
“Pay-per-view is dead,’’ Canelo promoter Oscar De La Hoya said during a conference call. “I’m happy to announce that. On Saturday night Dec. 15, Canelo Álvarez will experience a lot of firsts:
“His first fight in the mecca of boxing at MSG.
“The first fight of this historical contract with DAZN.
“His first time traveling to the 168-pound weight class as he looks to make history as part of a small list of Mexican fighters to become a three-division world champion.”
All of the firsts, however, hinge on how many people buy the streaming service and how much they like what they see. It’s no coincidence, perhaps, that Canelo’s first DAZN fight will happen a week after HBO’s exit from boxing last Saturday. The true test of Canelo’s DAZN debut (8p.m. ET/5 p.m. PT) will be in the cutting-edge technology and the audience’s comfort with it. Guess here: It’ll be a hit, especially among young fans who view the world through hand-held devices.
If they like what they see, they’ll like Canelo. They’ll be back to watch him fight at whatever weight and against whomever he chooses the next time around.
“We’ll be moving up in weight, and when a boxer does that, he’s basically experimenting,’’ Canelo trainer Eddy Reynoso said. “We know that we have a great fighter in front of us and that Canelo will be preparing well. So, height won’t be a problem to us. He’ll adapt to those type of fighters and he has worked with those type of boxers throughout his career. I have no doubt that he’ll be successful in this fight.”
There’s all kinds of speculation about Canelo’s next step, the second fight in his DAZN deal, projected to be May 4. If he is as successful as expected against Fielding, will he stay at 168 pounds in pursuit of a major title?
During a session with reporters before welterweight Jose Benavidez Jr.’s loss to Terence Crawford in Omaha last October, brother David Benavidez, who holds the WBC’s super-middleweight belt, said he wanted to fight Canelo. Benavidez is under suspension after testing positive for cocaine. The suspension ends in February. Then, he hopes to comeback in bout in March.
In May, he said, he’d be ready to fight Canelo.
Beat him, too, David Benavidez also said.
However, Canelo’s plans for May remain unclear. He says he will continue to fight at middleweight.
“When it’s done, I’ll come back to 160 pounds,’’ said Canelo, who holds two of the middleweight acronyms — WBC and WBA belts.
That suggests a third fight with Golovkin in a bout that would probably allow DAZN to score an early profit on its investment in Mexico’s best-known fighter.
“Regarding the fights we’ll see in the future, like I said, I’m all willing to make a third fight,’’ Canelo said. “If we made two, I’ll make a third one.’’
But there were no specific plans about whom and at what weight for May. If not Golovkin, there’s been talk about Danny Jacobs, who has the IBF belt. But Jacobs, like GGG, is news for another day.
For now, it’s DAZN, the only acronym that matters.
