Canelo Alvarez vs Sergey Kovalev: Russian champion said to be ‘balking’ over proposed date for super fight
Sergey Kovalev is reportedly ‘balking’ at the prospect of fighting Canelo Alvarez on November 2, owing to the fact that the potential bout comes so soon after his last win.
The WBO light-heavyweight champion defended his title by knocking out Britain’s Anthony Yarde on Saturday night, though this was far from straightforward.
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Kovalev controlled most of the bout, which took place in his Russian hometown, but endured a gruelling eighth round in which he tired and was badly hurt by Yarde.
After eleven tough rounds, ‘Krusher’ finally got the KO and switched his focus back to the aforementioned Canelo contest.
Negotiations with the Mexican had been taking place previously and it was already known beforehand that, should he come through Yarde, Kovalev would likely take this fight next.
However, now it’s claimed by that the 36-year-old is ‘balking’ at the prospect of returning to the ring in just ten weeks’ time.
November 2 is the planned date for the fight put forward by Canelo and, more importantly, his US broadcaster DAZN.
It’s understood that, as they are a streaming service who charge a monthly paid subscription to customers, DAZN ideally want their two biggest star boxers to be separated by over a month.
With Anthony Joshua rematching Andy Ruiz Jr on December 7, this creates a clear obstacle to prevent pushing back Canelo’s date any further than it already has been.
As a result, the Kovalev fight hangs in the balance as things stand.