Jermall Charlo has surprisingly changed his stance, refuting any negotiations with Canelo Alvarez after previously announcing on Instagram that he would be facing him on May 4th.
Assuming Jermall (33-0, 22 KOs) has not been instructed to keep the information about the Canelo fight confidential until it is officially announced by the promoters of the May 4th event, it suggests that the Mexican star has other American fighters in mind for that date.
Jermall dismisses speculation, stating, “I have not spoken to Al Haymon since my last fight. So anyone who keeps talking about fighting Canelo – there is no confirmation,” on Instagram.
The real question is, why did Jermall confirm on Instagram earlier today that he will be fighting Canelo on May 4th if he has not had any discussions with Haymon? This is peculiar. Was Jermall simply toying with the fans, raising their hopes for no reason, or was he instructed to remain silent by his management?
Typically, promoters prefer to be the ones to announce fights as they want to present it in a way that generates the most excitement. Even if the fighter reveals the information first, if it is a significant enough fight, fans will still be eager to watch it.
This writer suspects that Jermall has been instructed by his management to remain silent until they are the ones to officially announce the Canelo fight for May 4th, particularly if negotiations are still ongoing. Jermall cannot make the announcement unless the contracts have been signed.
Crawford and Benavidez: The Remaining Contenders?
If Jermall is not in contention for the fight with Canelo, then there are two potential contenders:
Between the two, the 36-year-old Crawford (40-0, 31 KOs) has been seen in the gym, noticeably larger and working out this week.
Crawford would not be bulking up if he were not being considered for Canelo’s May 4th fight, as he appears significantly larger than usual. He does not typically gain weight like this before fights.
It is not expected that Benavidez will be Canelo’s next opponent, as some believe that he is being saved for Alvarez’s final fight on his PBC contract in September.
According to the Source boxingnews24.com