Eddie Hearn enjoyed working closely with Saul "Canelo" Alvarez for his Dec. 19 victory over Callum Smith to claim the WBA, WBC, and The Ring super-middleweight titles.
Hearn joined the Ak and Barak Show (on DAZN and Sirius XM Fight Nation) on Tuesday and discussed Alvarez's situation of arguably being the United States' number one boxing draw. But Hearn believes unified heavyweight champion Anthony Joshua has the broader global appeal for now.
If Alvarez does indeed decide to go back into business with Matchroom for his 2021 itinerary — which Hearn also confirmed will hopefully involve a February title defense vs. mandatory challenger Avni Yildirim before a quick return to battle WBO super-middle champ Billy Joe Saunders in May — the managing director outlined how he would help him take the next step.
"One of the plans we would have for Canelo right now is to expand his global profile," Hearn explained. "Canelo right now is boxing's biggest star in the United States, without question. But is he the biggest star globally? I think that award goes to Anthony Joshua, to be honest with you.
"So I think we have to look into different markets and say 'okay, how do we raise Canelo's profile globally? How do we take him to the Middle East, the Far East, Europe, London?' And of course, there's Mexico. I know the ticket money isn't there at the moment, but can you imagine an event in Guadalajara? It would be absolutely nuts. It was great to see 12,000 fans back in the building in San Antonio. These people love him. So the plan is for him to box more frequently."
A fight people want to see is the trilogy between Alvarez and IBF middleweight champion Gennadiy Golovkin. The two perennial rivals fought to a draw in their first encounter in 2017, before Canelo claimed a majority decision one year later. Both bouts were thrilling scraps that were almost too close to call, leading to popular demand for them to run it back one final time.
Hearn feels one day Alvarez and Golovkin could meet again but not right now.
"I think a trilogy with Gennadiy Golovkin could happen one day," Hearn said. "But at the moment, Canelo is focusing on the champions. In this period we're in at the minute, fighters have to do that."