Los Angeles August 2nd, 2019- The IBF stripped Canelo Alvarez of its middleweight title yesterday to the shock of a few. Most bothered by the move was Golden Boy owner Oscar De La Hoya who released a blistering statement via press release condemning the organization.
De La Hoya claimed in his statement that Golden Boy was already in negotiations to face Derevyanchenko “but the truth is I’m now certain they never had any intention of making a deal. But instead they wanted to force us to relinquish Canelo’s belt.” Said De La Hoya via press release.
Dereveyanchenko certainly saw his opportunity to earn the IBF title come and go in a loss to former champion Daniel Jacobs. The amazing oddity is that he was promptly placed back into the sanctioning organizations number one ranking. Canelo rightfully rejected the notion of facing a fighter whom lost to the man he just defeated convincingly, to attract a more marketable foe in the future.
The WBC relieved Alvarez of the requirement to face contenders with records and popularity unworthy of the biggest purses and events of the year. Allowing Canelo to pursue the biggest fights under the guise of “Franchise Champion” Alvarez will continue to pay a sanctioning fee as well as represent the organization during his highly marketed events.
Smart in terms of business for the WBC, yet confusing to the fan. The Franchise tag in theory may be the most common sense act to come out of a sanctioning organization in terms of allowing fighters to make the fights fans actually want.
Enter the dramatic plot twist.
WBO belt holder Demetrius Andrade, the self proclaimed most avoided of the middleweight division is now reportedly in talks to face Canelo later this year. Canelo vs Andrade held much more interest in the public as Derevyanchenko was neither wanted nor recognized by the masses as a front runner to challenge Alvarez.
But Andrade, there’s a small movement behind the fighter from Rhode Island and his slick boxing style.
Once upon a time Oscar De La Hoya said “Where can I get more glory? Fighting this guy or that guy” when asked about a potential fight with Floyd Mayweather following a knockout victory over Ricardo Mayorga. That fight happened and it was the biggest fight in the sport, during the build up there was no focus on which organizations belt was around Mayweather or De La Hoya’s waist it was about the size of the event and the ramifications of the sports future.
De La Hoya, and eventually Floyd Mayweather were bigger than the belts. Early in their careers the belts mattered however as their stature and dominance in the sport grew, the sanctioning organizations mattered less. Rendering them to trinkets, the belts became a moniker of the contender to the superstar.
Superstar’s like Alvarez.
Belts matter, but the fighter makes the belt. Not the other way around.
