When WBO middleweight champion Demetrius Andrade signed with Matchroom Boxing in the summer of 2018, he said the fighters in the 160-pound division were going to stop running and moving into different weight divisions to avoid him.
Being able to secure marquee showdowns against unified middleweight champion Saul "Canelo" Alvarez and IBF middleweight titlist Gennadiy Golovkin has proven to be unsuccessful. Alvarez, in the buildup to knocking out Sergey Kovalev in November to become the WBO light heavyweight champion, said that Andrade is a boring fighter and hasn't faced anybody. "GGG" has dismissed the undefeated and two-division world champion entirely.
Even though boxing fans want to see the best taking on the best, Andrade (28-0, 17 KOs), who looks to defend his title for the third time on Thursday at Meridian at Island Gardens in Miami against Luke Keeler, isn't going to be the person that tries to put guys in a corner and search for those high-caliber fights.
"It’s business, you know," Andrade told DAZN News. "It’s part of the game. At this point, can I corner somebody? It’s not about me cornering somebody. It’s about me doing my job, continue to beat people and all the media, the public, DAZN, the marketing and everybody else, let them know that this is the fight we want to set up and make happen. You know, if they focus on GGG and Canelo, then that’s their focus to make that happen. I’ve got to make sure my focus is me-Billy Joe (Saunders), me-(Jermall) Charlo, me and whoever, (Sergiy) Derevyanchenko. That’s all I can do.
"I’m not chasing Canelo anymore," Andrade added. "If Canelo comes, Canelo comes. Everybody's just waiting for Canelo (like) duck, duck, goose. We still got to do what we got to do. We still got to make a living. We still got to make our own legacies. I think that’s the best way to make (it).
"He (GGG) probably wants the last big check with Canelo," Andrade continued. "That’s what he’s looking for."
Another option recently surfaced for Andrade as his promoter at Matchroom, Eddie Hearn, made what was deemed a "massive offer" to WBC middleweight titleholder Jermall Charlo for a unification bout sometime this year. It's a fight Andrade is interested in, but Charlo hasn't replied to whether he feels the same way.
An old scenario also intrigues Andrade in the form of WBO super middleweight champion Billy Joe Saunders. They were supposed to meet in October 2018, but Saunders failed a drug test, and the bout got scrapped.
"Boo Boo" feels the Englishman is the more likely opponent to face next if he can past Keeler.
"Eddie Hearn said he sent out a deal, and they haven’t already refused it," Andrade said. "I guess it’s not something they want to do. Billy Joe (Saunders) thing is something that we have control over (and) make it happen for at least the next fight. The Charlo thing can happen at the end of the year, the middle of the year. But at least for the next fight, I think we can make (the Saunders fight) happen."