Saul ‘Canelo’ Alvarez has signed a four-fight deal with Riyadh Season, to be commenced with a fight against IBF Super-Middleweight World Champion, William Scull.
Canelo held that belt, as well as the three others, until the middle of last year when he refused to face Scull in a mandatory defence. The cuban, fighting out of Germany, then won the vacant strap by defeating Vladimir Shishkin.
With the opportunity to now become two-time undisputed, the Scull bout is suddenly appealing to Alvarez, and the pair will face off in Saudi Arabia on May 3. Canelo will, should he be victorious, move into a September bout with Terence Crawford.
One man notably absent from his opponent list still is David Benavidez, who grew tired of chasing the fight at 168 pounds and recently moved up to light-heavyweight.
Despite now competing in different divisions, Benavidez is the man most fans feel Canelo must face before retirement. Speaking to World Boxing News when the idea of a Scull fight was first floated, Benavidez said the champion is ‘milking it,’ referring to his choices in opponents.
“He’s kind of just milking it. I’m not gonna say that if he fights Terence Crawford. That’s a tough opponent. But William Scull? Come on.”
Benavidez then urged the unified champion’s fans to call for tougher opposition.
“You know, if he takes that fight, which I don’t doubt, I think his fans just need to be real with themselves.
“You really want to pay that much money for William Scull? I’ve only heard Scull’s name once or twice. I mean no disrespect to him … Canelo’s taking his own route. He’s entitled to do whatever he wants to do.”
Meanwhile, Benavidez is in a fantastic position with or without Canelo, having beaten David Morrell in his latest outing to put him in prime position to face the winner of the undisputed rematch between champion Artur Beterbiev and challenger Dmitry Bivol.
