Floyd Mayweather and Saul Alvarez facing off in Times Square in New York City (Photo: Showtime Sports)
By Chris Robinson
The kickoff press conference for the September 14th Floyd Mayweather-Saul ‘Canelo’ Alvarez super fight was held on Monday afternoon in New York and there was a large turnout in advance of one of the biggest fights in years.
At 22 years old, the WBA/WBC junior middleweight champion Alvarez finds himself a clear underdog heading into the match yet he seems completely comfortable with the situation.
Speaking to various members of the media during a roundtable-style discussion, the young titlist from Jalisco, Mexico brushed off the notion that the magnitude of the event may get to him in the coming months.
“I’m ready for this fight,” Alvarez stated. “I’m going to be ready for the pressure. I’m a very serious person. I take everything very serious and Floyd can do whatever he wants; he’s not going to take me out of my game plan.”
Alvarez certainly has his work cut out for him in Mayweather, who, at 36 years of age, looked very impressive just last month in winning a whitewash decision victory over Robert Guerrero that showcased his ever-present speed, reflexes, and deft movement.
Alvarez is set to stage his training camp in the mountains of Big Bear, Calif. for the fight and seems to recognize just how important the element of sparring will be towards his preparation.
“I think I’m going to have to train with guys that are my size so that they can be able to take my punch,” Alvarez stated. “Obviously, they have to have the same style that Floyd has and have the same attributes that Floyd has.”
One concern that seems to be in the back of Alvarez’s mind is his conditioning heading into the fight, as there were various reports circulating that he was seeking a new strength and conditioning coach following his unanimous decision victory over Austin Trout in April.
Alvarez had plenty of moments of success against Trout, even dropping the cagey southpaw in the seventh round with a crisp right hand, yet he showed himself to be tired over the second half of the contest while failing to put an exclamation point on his performance.
For the Mayweather showdown, Alvarez hinted that he may back off on the use of lifting weights to ensure that he doesn’t gain too much mass that could possibly slow him down.
“Yes, because of my physique, when I start using weights, I gain a lot of muscle,” Alvarez noted. “So that’s not a good thing either. I am going to do some weights, but it’s going to be calculated in a smart way.”
You can tell just how focused Alvarez is on the task at hand and he isn’t trying to downplay the quality of his future hall-of-fame opponent.
But moments like these are what help build an aspiring champion into something special and, after all, so too has Mayweather been in the exact position that Alvarez finds himself in now.
“Obviously I’m very young but I’m experienced as well,” Alvarez added. “I’ve got a lot of experience. I’ve been learning the last few years. The position that I’m in right now, he was in this position as well.”
PLEASE CHECK OUT the full interview with Alvarez below and check out other exclusives as well
Canelo Alvarez: Sparring partners, experience, weight lifting for Mayweather fight [True HD]
Aaron Coley (6-0, 4 KO’s) sparring Kevin Newman at the Mayweather Boxing Club
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=y0O1L9jtZNs
The real Gennady Golovkin: Childhood days in Kazakhstan, discovering boxing, and more [Part 1]
Brandon Rios on why Marcos Maidana knocks out Adrien Broner and why he isn’t the next Floyd
Alexis Santiago in training at the Mayweather Boxing Club for July 20th show in Phoenix
Chris Robinson can be reached at Trimond@aol.com