Eddie Hearn believes that Terence Crawford would be the underdog in any match-up with Saul Canelo Alvarez.
Alvarez is set to fight Jermell Charlo at 168lbs as he makes his return to the ring after a win over John Ryder in Mexico in May.
Hearn and Alvarez have a long track record of working with one another, and the promoter is not ruling out rekindling the business relationship further down the line.
Speaking to The DAZN Boxing Show, he said: “I’ve long been a fan of Canelo Alvarez, before we even represented him. We’ve had a tremendous run of five or six fights. We made him hundreds of millions of dollars, he made us a lot of money as well. I loved working for him, and I think he enjoyed working with us.
“I hope that we get the opportunity to work with him again. On a personal level, I class him as a friend. Classy guy, we talk socially every now and again, but he made the best move for his career. And as friendly as we are, it doesn’t really work like that.”
Hearn was asked about Oscar De La Hoya’s recent comments that he believed undisputed welterweight champion Crawford would beat Alvarez if the two met in the ring, Hearn suggested his former colleague would have too much of a size advantage even if Crawford moved up the divisions.
He continued: “I hope he beats Charlo, if you’re going to ask me about the Terence Crawford question, you’re talking about two of my favourite fighters.
“Two modern-day greats. I do think Canelo Alvarexz is too big for Terence Crawford, as good as Terence Crawford is. In my opinion you will never see Canelo come under 168 in a fight. I don’t think he wants to do that. 168 is still a little bit, not tough, but it’s enough.
“So I don’t think you see Crawford come up to 168 and I think if he does, I don’t think he beats Canelo. So I’m not sure whether that fight happens, but if it does, two great fighters and I’ll favour Alvarez.”