CANELO ALVAREZ wants to return to light-heavyweight to fight Artur Beterbiev, boxing’s only champion with a 100 per cent KO ratio.
The Mexican superstar jumped up from middleweight to light-heavy in 2019, knocking out Sergey Kovalev for the WBO belt.
He later vacated it to drop down to super-middle, where he currently reigns as unified champion.
Canelo is in talks with Caleb Plant for an undisputed title decider, with the American holding the IBF strap needed to complete his collection.
But promoter Eddie Hearn revealed he is already plotting a move back up to 175lb, and will target the most fearsome puncher of them all.
Hearn told DAZN: “You know, you have Joe Smith, you have Dmitry Bivol and you have Artur Beterbiev.
“Dmitry Bivol is probably the easiest fight to make because he works with us.
“But Artur Beterbiev, Canelo talks about that, but he knows how hard Beterbiev punches, and Canelo’s a competitor.
“Now you tell him that’s not the fight to take. You want to take it? You tell him that’s a dangerous fight? He’ll want to do it.
“It’s very, very risky moving up to 175. You know, we still were against Kovalev.
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“Kovalev was, you know, these guys, particularly Bivol; he’s in his prime right now.
“And still young. Beterbiev is aging but still in his prime Kovalev, arguably the back end of his career, but you could do it.”
Canelo, 30, who recently stopped Brit Billy Joe Saunders, 31, in eight rounds, is negotiating a unification with unbeaten Plant, 28, for September.
But if a deal cannot be reached, the four-division king could go straight into another title challenge up in weight, where 16-0 Beterbiev, 36, awaits.
Hearn said: “We want to make a call probably next week on the fight that Canelo will take in September.
“I think the talk about the 175-pound fights were in Mexico last week.
“If we can’t get the Caleb Plant fight, obviously, we need another dance partner for September, he’s not going to go back to 160 ever.
“So his choices to defend these championships are 168. But I think he just prefers to take on champions.”
