Canelo Alvarez will likely fight on May 2022 against Congolese Ilunga Makabu for the WBC World Cruiserweight Championship, what would be his fifth division conquered in boxing, but his next opponent on the Super middleweight category, the one he cleaned up on 2021, must be one step closer from him.
WBC has ordered a clash between David Benavidez and David Lemieux for the World Super middleweight interim title. Furthermore the fact of winning a (minor) title, the reward that will get the victor of fight is the presumable chance to challenge Alvarez for the major belt of the division.
With Mexican Pound for Pound king focused on making history as the sixth boxer to be a 5 division World Champion, it was natural, and fair, that the organization leaded by Mauricio Sulaiman let Benavidez and Lemieux fight for the chance of sharing the ring with Canelo.
Who is contending to be Canelo's next rival in the Super middleweight division?
The fight for a ticket to challenge Alvarez will be starred by David Benavidez and David Lemieux. The official date and venue for the clash is not announced yet, but according to ESPN'S reporter Mike Coppinger, it could probably happen at Phoenix, Arizona, on the 2022 spring.
Benavidez, 25 years, 25-0-0 (22 KOs), is a Mexican-American former Super middleweight Champion of the World. In fact, he has held and lost that honour twice, but never in the ring. The first time, in 2017, he was stripped due to a positive test for cocaine; the second one, he lost the battle against the scale on August 2020. He is the number one contender in the WBC ranking.
Lemieux (Montreal, Canada, 1988) was also a Champion in the past: he conquered the IBF World Middleweight title on 2015, but lost it inmediately against Gennadiy Golovkin. He has jumped into the Super middleweight category on 2019. Ever since, he has held and won 3 fights against minor rivals.
