Canelo Alvarez Sued Golden Boy Promotions/DAZN Tuesday

The sorted soap opera between four division World Champion, Canelo Alvarez,, his promoter, Golden Boy Promotions, and the DAZN streaming service finally has boiled over Tuesday and it’s  apparently to the “point of no return.”

This after Alvarez filed suit in US District Court in Southern California  to break his contract with Oscar De La Hoya’s boxing promotion and DAZN.

The 24-page lawsuit requests the court to immediately hear his case that his contract with Golden Boy and their deal with DAZN has irreparably harmed him and kept him from consistently fighting over the last two years.

case 2:20-cv-08226@canelo v @dazngroup @GoldenBoyBoxing @OscarDeLaHoya

first 4 pages of 24. 10 total complaints

demand for jury trial#boxing #boxeo pic.twitter.com/auB3Oee71R

— Arejay (@arejaywoof) September 9, 2020

Alvarez asked the court for at least $280 million, or what is still roughly the balance of his original 11-fight $335 million deal with DAZN signed in 2018. That part of the court filing says,

Despite Alvarez’ successes, both DAZN and Golden Boy have broken the promises they made to each other, Alvarez, and boxing fans; in doing so Defendants have breached their respective contracts and caused Alvarez damages of – at least – $280 million.

Alvarez, (53-1-2, 36 KOs) hired the Maloney Firm from El Segundo, California, and is being represented by Attorneys Gregory Smith and Patrick Maloney, according to the filing of the suit.

The suit has 10 complaints including allegations of:  breach of contract, intentional interference with contract, negligent interference with contract, fraud – concealment, breach of fiduciary duty and seeking of declaratory relief (judge to intervene).

During one part of the filing, the 30 year old Alvarez alleges that De La Hoya and DAZN had secretly negotiated new terms for approving Alvarez’s fights/opponents that they’re now imposing. That is to say, that DAZN has the right to reject Alvarez’s fights, if they don’t think they’re meaningful or important enough for the guaranteed payout to him.

That reads in part,

“…Alvarez’ opponents “be mutually selected by [Alvarez] and [Golden Boy Promotions], subject to [Alvarez’] final approval, not to be unreasonably withheld.” Notably, the Alvarez Contract did not mention that DAZN would have any right to accept or reject any opponents selected by Alvarez.”

Alvarez makes clear that he never agreed to that kind of stipulation in his promotional deal with De La Hoya and further, he would never have allowed the streaming service or Golden Boy  to be able to dictate which type of opponents he had to fight.

The suit also makes clear that DAZN was trying to force Alvarez to fight former Undisputed Middleweight champion, Gennady Golovkin, for a third time. But, Alvarez continues to maintain, now in the legal filing, that he has every right to rebuff that third fight. That part of the suit reads partially,

“Prior to these discussions with Defendants, Alvarez was unaware that DAZN believed Golden Boy Promotions had promised that he would fight Golovkin, unaware that the DAZN Contract gave DAZN the right to reject the opponents he selected, and was unaware that the DAZN Contract contained clauses potentially inconsistent with those of the Alvarez Contract.”

Alvarez and GGG fought two hotly contested fights in 2017 and 2018 with the first ending in a draw and Canelo winning a narrow decision in the rematch handing Golovkin his only pro loss.

Alvarez became incensed with De La Hoya and Golden Boy, last summer when they failed to make a fight with Sergey Derevyanchenko before the IBF stripped Canelo of their version of the 160 lb. title. Their relationship has been an icy disaster, since then.

Now, as we reported back in March, DAZN chairman John Skipper intervened and had met personally with Alvarez and his team to get him to agree to fight twice for the remainder of this year. That was to first take on English unbeaten Super Middleweight, Billy Joe Saunders, in May and then, to fight Golovkin this fall.

However, the Covid-19 pandemic shut down all of sports and the Saunders fight never happened this Summer.

And now, Alvarez, Golden Boy and DAZN have been in a “standoff,” as to who his next fight would be against?

This had included the possibility of Canelo fighting another British Super middleweight and WBA champ, Callum Smith. But, that fight has yet to materialize.

So, Canelo has not been in the ring since he competed for the first time at the Light Heavyweight, beating WBO champ Sergey Kovalev by 11th round TKO last November. That’s his only fight in the last 17 months with the now continued squabbling under the Golden Boy/DAZN deal.

Canelo reportedly wanted to fight Turkish Super Middleweight contender, Avni Yildirim, later this fall, but that was apparently rejected by DAZN. So, now, this is his next blockbuster legal move to try to end his deal with Golden Boy and DAZN.

Late Tuesday night, De La Hoya’s promotion gave a statement to the media refuting that the issue is not with them and laying the blame for no Canelo fights so far in 2020 at the feet of DAZN.

Golden Boy’s Stefan Friedman said in part, in the statement,

“They’re (DAZN) the ones refusing to honor the contract by not approving the outstanding opponents we have presented to them and by refusing to pay the contractually required amount,” Friedman said. “Even though our contract specifically gives Golden Boy the right to wait until the pandemic is over and fans can return; in the best interest of boxing,

Golden Boy is doing everything it can to make great fights happen. We remain ready, willing and able to make a fight for Canelo as soon as possible.” 

DAZN still had no comment on the suit, as of early Wednesday, but will likely respond with some kind of statement later in the day and possible “counter suit” to answer the allegations by Alvarez’s lawyers and try to keep the contract, for now, in tact, in the Southern California Court.

Of course, all of the sides could easily and eventually come to some kind of compromise and get Alvarez back in the ring before the end of this year.