Who will Canelo Álvarez fight in May?

Saúl Canelo Álvarez has recovered sooner than expected from his left hand surgery and he is ready to jump back to the ring as early as May. The undisputed middleweight champion wants a rematch against Dmitry Bivol, who just defeated another Mexican, Gilberto ‘Zurdo’ Ramírez, but that fight might not happen, just yet.

Why Bivol doesn’t want to fight Canelo in May

After defeating Ramírez on November 5 in Abu Dhabi, the Russian boxer said that he is currently not interested in fighting against Canelo any time soon, because he wants to sweep the 175 pounds division. The problem is that the rematch fight against Álvarez has to happen because it was in the initial contract in case the Mexican lost against Bivol.

“Money is good, but legacy is better,” said Bivol during the press conference following the win over Zurdo Ramírez. So even though the rematch has to happen, Canelo will not sit around and wait for Bivol to accept the fight. The Mexican talked about his recovery and how eager he is to return to the ring.

“My scars have already closed, I’m doing therapy very well, so I don’t think it’s going to stop me that much,” Saul Álvarez told Bet365. “My fights are always in May or September. I think I’ll be ready for May again. The doctor at first had told me that I had to be four weeks with the cast without moving it after the surgery.

“When he came in and saw inside, everything I had and what he did to me, he said it was better than we expected, that I should only be in the cast for seven days, then remove the stitches and begin rehabilitation. I’ve been in rehab for two weeks now,” added Canelo.

“The first half of the fight I did very well and then came the overwhelm because we didn’t do training as it should be, especially in a bigger division where you have to be carrying it more, they are heavier. That’s what we’ll be looking for, the rematch. If he don’t wants to fight, there are more things to do,” he said.