Report- Kovalev camp ok with quick November date for Canelo fight

Will 8 weeks be enough of a rest and recovery training time for WBO Light Heavyweight Champion Sergey Kovalev to turn around and fight Canelo Alvarez? Well, a report Tuesday afternoon says that the Kovalev camp believes it is okay.

ESPN boxing reporter Insider Steve Kim tweeted that Kovalev’s manager and trainer confirmed to him that a potential November 2nd fight with Canelo is not out of the question:

Spoke to Egis Klimas and Buddy McGirt, they both said that the Nov 2nd turnaround for Sergey Kovalev to face Canelo is not an issue… #boxing

— Steve Kim (@StevESPNKim) August 27, 2019

Coming off his dramatic 11th round TKO of previously unbeaten challenger Anthony Yarde Saturday night in Russia, Kovalev is in position to have the biggest payday of his professional career. It’s believed he could make as much as $10 million guaranteed, now, to take on Alvarez at 175 lbs.

Alvarez, Golden Boy Promotions and DAZN streaming service have already reserved the November 2nd date for Las Vegas, as the middleweight champion has floundered to be able to get an agreement done with an opponent. However, DAZN has huge financial motivation to get a fight deal done this year after having signed Canelo to 10 fight $365 million deal. Yet, they have only seen two fights from it in the first year or so, of it.

In fact, when Canelo’s camp announced earlier this summer that they would not be fighting the rest of the year, DAZN responded almost immediately within hours, that they were still negotiating a date and a fight for Alvarez before the end of calendar 2019.

Apparently, Kovalev would not put aside the title defense with Yarde in his hometown of Chelyabinsk, in part because of sentimentality, but also because Alvarez and Golden Boy would not guarantee him enough money before the fight with Yarde was made and the date was set for last weekend.

Obviously, the 36-year old Kovalev will be at a disadvantage against a younger opponent (Alvarez), who didn’t just go through a grueling battle like the Russian did Saturday evening.

In fact, Yarde may have possibly been on the verge of stopping Kovalev, when he rocked him with a series of punches and staggered him twice with the referee looking on closely before the bell sounded to end the eighth round.

Kovalev rallied and wore down Yarde, staggering him a couple of times in the 10th round and eventually. flooring him with a straight left Jab coming in that resulted in the 11th round TKO.

Alvarez hasn’t fought since he decisioned Daniel Jacobs back in May.

The other element of intrigue is weight, as Alvarez has fought at both Middleweight and Super-Middleweight (168 lbs.) over the last year-and-a-half. He would now have to move up to bigger 175 lbs. for the first time to fight Kovalev.

It remains to be seen what stipulations there would be on Alvarez’s allowed weight (below 175) and whether Kovalev would have a restriction on how much more he can weigh the day the fight official weight check.

But, it appears, he is willing to follow through with the Alvarez fight on short notice, due to the payday.