UFC’s Kamaru Usman Wants to Fight Canelo Alvarez in Boxing Match
AP Photo/Corey Sipkin
UFC welterweight champion Kamaru Usman has reiterated his desire to have a boxing match against super
middleweight boxing champion Canelo Alvarez.
Usman told TMZ Sports on Thursday his long-standing stance hasn’t
changed despite UFC President Dana White brushing the idea aside
after the “The Nigerian Nightmare” successfully defended
his title with a win over Colby Covington in early November.
“I’ve already said the name that
interests me. Canelo. That’s what interests me,” Usman said.
The 34-year-old MMA superstar explained
his hope of having the marquee bout isn’t a publicity stunt. He believes there’s a
chance he could give the best pound-for-pound boxer in the world a
run for his money.
“If I don’t believe in myself,
then why would I do it? Of course I believe in myself,” Usman told
TMZ. “He’s amazing. He’s amazing. I’m not taking nothing away from
him. But, how often does someone get the chance to be able to test themselves against the
best?”
It’s not a major surprise Usman, who
owns a 20-1 career MMA record and hasn’t lost since May 2013, might be
looking for a new type of challenge. He’s defeated Covington and Jorge
Masvidal two times apiece in his last five fights and doesn’t have an
obvious opponent waiting in the UFC welterweight division.
That said, the question is whether Alvarez, who’s
coming off a knockout win over Caleb Plant on the same night Usman
dispatched Covington, can be convinced to take on the cross-sport
encounter.
The boxing standout didn’t sound
interested when asked by TMZ about the prospect of taking on Usman
before his clash with Plant.
“I don’t see…It doesn’t make
sense for me. I want to make history in boxing, and I don’t see
anything right there,” Alvarez said.
The 31-year-old Mexican sensation
quickly moved on to chasing his next goal after beating Plant—trying to become a five-division world champion by fighting Ilunga
Junior Makabu for the WBC cruiserweight title.
“I know … what [Makabu] has done with
the heavyweights he spars with, and that is why we asked for the
fight,” Eddy Reynoso, Alvarez’s trainer, told ESPN Deportes’
Salvador Rodriguez. “We know that [Makabu] is strong, but Canelo
can beat him.”
Details for the fight must still be
finalized, but it sounds like there’s motivation on both sides to get
a deal done.
So, Usman will have to wait at least a little
longer to see if he’ll ever get a chance to step in a boxing ring
opposite Canelo.
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