Canelo Alvarez Reacts To Being Stripped Of IBF Middleweight Belt
Earlier this week it was announced that unified boxing middleweight champion Canelo Alvarez had been stripped of his IBF middleweight title.
The title stripping was explained as Alvarez failing to negotiate with mandatory challenger Sergiy Derevyanchenko. Shortly after the news, Oscar De La Hoya and Golden Boy Promotions released a statement on the matter.
“We are extremely disappointed at the IBF for forcing the world’s best fighter to relinquish his world title. We have been in serious negotiations with Sergiy Derevyanchenko’s promoter. We offered his team an unprecedented amount of money for a fighter of his limited stature and limited popularity.
“But, the truth is that I’m now certain they never had any intention of making a deal. But instead, they wanted to force us to relinquish Canelo’s belt. This is an insult to boxing and more importantly an insult to the boxing fans of the world. This decision validates already existing concerns about the credibility of the IBF championship.
“Canelo inherited a mandatory challenger by defeating Daniel Jacobs, the man who beat Derevyanchenko, so to strip him of his title without giving him enough time to make the best fight possible is truly what is wrong with boxing, and I plan to aggressively consider all legal actions possible.”
Canelo himself took to Twitter to comment on being stripped, and he was not happy. The Mexican star claims he was unaware of the exact details of the bout agreement the Golden Boy Promotions matchmaker signed.
“I’m very upset and ashamed with my fans, to be unfairly stripped of my belt by the IBF, but specially when i did not have the knowledge of the agreement that GBP match maker had signed.”
Alvarez currently holds a record of 52-1-2 inside the ring. He comes off a dominant victory over Daniel Jacobs in which he actually won the IBF title. Now, that title has escaped him. He currently has no fight booked as of this writing.
What do you think about Alvarez being stripped of the IBF middleweight title?
