World Boxing Council president Mauricio Sulaiman is looking forward to the long-awaited showdown between Miguel Cotto and Saul "Canelo" Alvarez because he believes the showdown should happen soon.
Sulaiman said in an interview that it is the perfect time to stage the Cotto vs. Alvarez fight because both boxing superstars are in shape to give fight fans a treat.
Cotto, who is the reigning WBC middleweight champion, will face Daniel Geale on Saturday night at the Barclays Center in Brooklyn. It will be the first fight of Cotto since winning the title against Sergio Martinez in June last year, and Sulaiman thinks a win will lead to the fight against Alvarez.
"Miguel Cotto returns after a year of being away from boxing. He's coming to defend his middleweight title and there is great potential for the winner to become the next opponent of Canelo," Sulaiman said via BoxingScene. "Cotto has to win, and walk away without getting cut or getting injured in order to be ready for the next fight."
Sulaiman also thinks Alvarez is now ready for another big fight. The WBC president said the 24-year-old Mexican has learned a lot from his loss to Floyd Mayweather in September 2013 based on how he performed in his last three fights -- against Alfredo Angulo, Erislandy Lara and James Kirkland.
"Canelo learned a lot in the loss to Floyd Mayweather," Sulaiman added. "He's already had three fights in his comeback campaign and he's looked very good, very strong, very hungry. He is a great fighter and I think it is good time for him to look for the WBC championship at middleweight."
Sulaiman also noted that reigning International Boxing Organization and World Boxing Association middleweight champion Gennady Golovkin is still the mandatory challenger for the WBC title.
In order to make the Cotto-Alvarez fight happen, Golovkin has to agree to step aside. According to Sulaiman, there are ongoing talks for such scenario, which makes him confident GGG will not prevent the fight from happening.
Hall of Fame trainer Freddie Roach also told BoxingScene on Thursday that Cotto will likely face Alvarez in his next fight if he wins against Geale on Saturday. The veteran boxing coach said Alvarez is the better option at this point because he is more popular than Golovkin.
"Canelo is the likely next," Roach said of Cotto's next opponent. "He does more pay-per-view. Its Puerto Rico vs Mexico, it's a bigger fight right now. Golovkin's making noise. He's coming around, he's a good puncher. I think the winner of Canelo-Cotto would have to fight him for sure."
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