Saul "Canelo" Alvarez was borderline brilliant in his most recent fight with Alfredo "El Perro" Angulo on March 8, ripping a game opponent with all manner of hooks, uppercuts, jabs and body shots. Even more impressive were his pay-per-view numbers despite facing a man whom many considered to be a big underdog.
Erislandy Lara rips Alvarez, calls him scared
Canelo proved that his star power is so great that not even a one-sided beatdown in his previous bout could slow his momentum. He was shut out by Floyd Mayweather Jr. on many cards in September of 2013, and still generated "well over 350,000 buys vs. Angulo.
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"We are thrilled with the numbers from Saturday's event," Showtime Sports chief Stephen Espinoza said. "March 8 was the first time Canelo Alvarez headlined his own pay-per-view, and he decisively proved that he was ready to carry a pay-per-view card. These results are especially impressive in comparison to the pay-per-view performances of other boxing events over the past few months."
Erislandy Lara to face Ishe Smith in May?
With Canelo pulling in those types of numbers, and putting forth an impressive, if one-sided performance, bigger numbers are likely in store going forward. Next up appears to be Cuban slickster Erislandy Lara, who crashed Alvarez's post-fight presser and has been taunting him in the media and on social media for months.
Lara has called him "Canela," accused him of ducking a matchup, and said Canelo was handed all his achievements. When Alvarez passed over Lara and selected Angulo for this past fight, Lara tweaked both men saying, "Losers shouldn't be fighting each other."
He then said, "Boxing is about winning and fighting at the top level. It's time Canelo and his team stop making excuses to not fight the best. If Canelo wins, I'll make him quit and if Angulo wins I'll make him quit again. The American Dream will be the Mexican nightmare."
While his opponent isn't known yet, Canelo's set to return to the ring on July 26. If Lara isn't the opponent, he can be expected to face Ishe Smith, or possibly Carlos Molina if he can overcome his legal issues.Whoever the opponent is, Alvarez is already hard at work preparing.
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