By Kirk Jackson
The fight against Floyd Mayweather on Sept. 14th did not go as planned for Saul “Canelo” Alvarez.
Suffering his first defeat, he was bested by this generation’s greatest boxer on the biggest stage.
Even though he did lose a majority decision and could not quite figure out the puzzle of the elusive and skillful Floyd Mayweather, it was still a win/win situation Canelo.
For one, 44 other fighters before him failed to defeat Mayweather. Canelo also had a couple of legitimate built-in excuses in the effect that he would lose.
He can always bank on the lack of experience, being too young for the moment and also the catch-weight issue, losing the extra two pounds handicapped Alvarez, causing defeat.
Despite not winning many rounds according to most educated viewers, Alvarez did give a good account of himself and it’s clear to see he has a lot of upside.
He did lose to once in a generation type fighter and this experience will only make him better. In a few years’ time, the crown can be his for the taking.
But in order to reach the next level, Alvarez may have to change trainers.
His current trainer Jose “Chepo” Reynoso got him to this level, he’s a good trainer but there are some flaws that need to be addressed. The inability to make adjustments stuck out like a sore thumb in his fight against Mayweather.
There were many times throughout the fight where Canelo looked frustrated, confused and did not know what to do. Like there was not a definitive plan to defeat Mayweather.
Having a trainer like Ignacio “Nacho” Beristáin can do wonders for Alvarez. Beristáin has the pedigree and his resume speaks for itself.
List of prominent fighters trained by Beristáin:
Ricardo Lopez, Juan Manuel Marquez, Rafael Marquez, Abner Mares, Vincente Escobedo Jorge Paez, Humberto González, Daniel Zaragoza, Gilberto Román.
Under the tutelage of Beristáin, Canelo can learn how to make adjustments. Maybe even gain better perspective by attending some training camps with Juan Manuel Marquez.
Maybe he should consult with his friend Mares and get some feedback, but I think this would be a great move for Canelo and this could help build him into the future legendary figure Golden Boy Promotions wants to advertise.
Opponent wise, although it may be difficult for Alvarez to boil down to the junior middleweight limit, he may want to stay in that weight class for a few more fights.
A comeback fight against the newly crowned Carlos Molina 22-5-2 (6 KO’s) is a winnable fight for him.
Molina is a solid, rugged fighter, but does not possess a powerful punch and Canelo won’t be dealing with a master craftsmen this time around.
Should Alvarez get past Molina, he can set up a block buster match against Miguel Cotto late 2014, if Cotto can defeat Delvin Rodriguez and manages to stay unbeaten till then.
All that is needed with Canelo is a fine tuning of some of skills. He already had a huge fan following in Mexico leading up to his fight against Mayweather.
He is now even a bigger star and will be one of the faces of boxing for the next ten years.