Canelo Alvarez vs. Amir Khan Fight Slammed by Julio Cesar Chavez Jr.

Former WBC middleweight champion Julio Cesar Chavez Jr. has called Canelo Alvarez's recently announced fight with Amir Khan an "embarrassment," suggesting the weight disparity between the pair is unacceptable.

For Chavez Jr., Khan is not even a true welterweight—the Englishman has previously fought at lightweight and light welterweight—and the 29-year-old criticised the fight being made for Alvarez's WBC middleweight title, per BoxingScene.com's Miguel Rivera:

"With all due respect, Canelo's fight is an embarrassment to the middleweight division. A 140 [pounder] fighting at that weight [of 155]. It dishonours boxing. We all know who wins. That [fight] should not be allowed. The next fight for Chavez Jr. will be against Chris Algieri [the boxer joked]."

The pair will fight at a 155-pound catchweight at Las Vegas' T-Mobile Arena on May 7, but that still requires Khan, 29, to make a big step up from welterweight.

And as Mexico's Alvarez historically rehydrates significantly before a fight, a huge size difference is inevitable.

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It is set to be a major event, with Alvarez making his first defence of the title he won against Miguel Cotto in November.

However, Chavez Jr. is not the only person to voice doubts over the clash. Former three-time world champion Shane Mosley is also sceptical:

Not only is Khan significantly smaller than Alvarez, 25, but he has also been away from the ring for some time, having last fought in a laboured win over Chris Algieri in May 2015.

The Bolton fighter has won his last five fights since back-to-back defeats to Lamont Peterson and Danny Garcia in 2011 and 2012, and this fight is a huge opportunity for him.

There are few negatives for Khan in taking a shot at Alvarez's title, especially when compared with the damage he could have caused had he lost a much-touted fight against compatriot Kell Brook, per boxing writer Tom Craze:

Indeed, Bleacher Report's Rob Lancaster believes the Canelo fight offers Khan a chance to "change his legacy."

There are major doubts over how the clash will pan out, and Chavez Jr. is far from the only one with concerns.

But Khan and Alvarez should make for intriguing opponents, and there should be much to entertain both in the ring and in the build-up to May 7.