The Best Potential Fights for Boxing's Top Stars
Saul Alvarez faces Amir Khan Saturday night on pay-per-view. Fans who are having trouble getting excited for this fight can certainly be forgiven. While the lineal and WBC middleweight titles are on the line, the bout is taking place at a catchweight.
Khan has never fought above welterweight. And he was knocked out at both 135 and 140 pounds.
Things should get better for boxing fans as the year moves along, though. Many of the fights on this list have already been made or almost certainly will be.
Despite this weekend's uninspiring offering, 2016 is shaping up to be a year with a lot competitive fights between some of the sport's top stars.
Miguel Cotto: Timothy Bradley Jr.
1 of 10
Miguel Cotto was never a true middleweight. His reign as lineal middleweight champion was a historical fluke. When he won the belt, he turned in a brilliant performance against a 40-year-old champion (Sergio Martinez) who had been through multiple surgeries in recent years.
Martinez was willing to give Cotto that fight in order to pursue one last great payday against a legitimate superstar.
Cotto might have dropped the lineal title to Saul Alvarez last November, but he remains one of the sport's top draws. If he wishes to make more money, it's still out there to be made.
Timothy Bradley lost decisively to Manny Pacquiao last month in their third fight. But he remains one of the more talented pound-for-pound fighters on the planet. He has a big name that is recognizable to casual fans.
I actually expect this fight to get made before the end of 2016.
Kell Brook: Errol Spence Jr.
2 of 10
With Pacquiao retired, Kell Brook has a legitimate claim to being the top welterweight in the world. The undefeated Brit became IBF champion with an impressive win over Shawn Porter in August 2014.
But he's also overdue to face a true top contender. Since beating Porter, he's stopped Ionut Dan Ion, Frankie Gavin and Kevin Bizier. Not one of them was a true threat.
Errol Spence Jr. is ranked No. 2 by the IBF at welterweight, with nobody in front of him at No. 1. Spence's Round 5 destruction of Chris Algieri last month demonstrated that he is ready to face anybody in the world at 147 pounds. Algieri fought Khan on fairly even terms and went the distance against Pacquiao.
Brook would be a tough bout for Spence. But there's no reason at this point for him to keep marking time against second-tier contenders. And as champion, Brook should no longer put off facing the top fighters in the world at 147 pounds.
Danny Garcia: The Winner of Shawn Porter vs. Keith Thurman
3 of 10
With Floyd Mayweather Jr. in retirement, the time has come for the young welterweights to face off and determine who is really the top dog. WBA champion Keith Thurman's battle with former IBF titleholder Shawn Porter in June is a good step in that direction.
In a perfect world, the winner would face Danny Garcia in a unification bout.
Garcia looked good while defeating Robert Guerrero last January to capture the vacant WBC title. But Guerrero is a small welterweight and past his prime. That WBC belt doesn't mean much until Garcia defends it against a true contender.
Andre Berto does not qualify, by the way. He threw a beautiful uppercut to stop Victor Ortiz in a rematch last week, but he's barely in the division's top 20.
Garcia is overdue to fight another top star in his prime.
.jpg?w=256 "Colts Jaguars Football")
Gary Russell Jr.: The Winner of Leo Santa Cruz vs. Carl Frampton
4 of 10
I'd rate both Leo Santa Cruz and Carl Frampton as bigger stars than Gary Russell Jr. But all three fighters are talented young champions. And when Santa Cruz and Frampton are done battling for the WBA featherweight title in July, the winner should meet Russell in a unification bout for his WBC strap.
Meanwhile, Santa Cruz vs. Frampton is a nice fight. Santa Cruz defeated Abner Mares in the best win of his career last August. Frampton just won a super bantamweight unification bout last February against Scott Quigg, which made him the WBA and IBF champion at 122 pounds.
Both men are undefeated.
Russell rebounded from the only loss of his career, by majority decision to Vasyl Lomachenko in June 2014, by starching veteran champion Jhonny Gonzalez in March 2015. A bout between him and either Frampton or Santa Cruz would be compelling.
Roman Gonzalez: Juan Francisco Estrada
5 of 10
At some point, I would love to see Roman Gonzalez move up to 115 pounds and pursue a fourth world title, against either Japanese phenom Naoya Inoue or Mexican star Carlos Cuadras. But during his in-ring, post-fight interview with HBO's Max Kellerman last April, Gonzalez stated that he'd likely fight once more at flyweight before moving up.
If that's the case, there's only one fighter I'd really like to see him face. Gonzalez already has a victory over WBO and WBA flyweight champion Juan Francisco Estrada, but that came back in 2011 at 108 pounds, a difficult cut for Estrada.
Estrada has developed into a true star since that bout. Although Gonzalez is the lineal champ at 112 pounds, Estrada actually has a better resume in the division.
Gonzalez is the consensus No. 1 pound-for-pound fighter in the world. He should face the obvious No. 1 contender to his lineal title.
Terence Crawford: Viktor Postol
6 of 10
The great news when it comes to this entry is that the fight is a done deal. Terence Crawford and Viktor Postol will meet in July, with both the WBC and WBO 140-pound titles on the line.
Crawford has emerged as one of the biggest stars in the sport over the past two years. He was 2014's Fighter of the Year and won a second world title in 2015.
Crawford has made it a habit to beat good fighters with ease. Yuriorkis Gamboa and Raymundo Beltran are just two of his victims.
Viktor Postol forced himself into the spotlight last October when he dominated and knocked out Lucas Matthysse. He has the length and technical skill to give Crawford legitimate problems.
This will be a battle of undefeated fighters. It's a can't-miss bout for hardcore fans.
Deontay Wilder: Alexander Povetkin
7 of 10
Just as WBO light welterweight champion Terence Crawford is giving fans what they deserve by facing WBC champ Viktor Postol, WBC heavyweight titleholder Deontay Wilder is finally delivering by facing Alexander Povetkin, a legitimate top-five contender, on May 21.
With Wladimir Klitschko and Tyson Fury set to rematch in July, Povetkin is arguably the top heavyweight in the world that Wilder could face.
After losing to Klitschko in October 2013, Povetkin rebounded by knocking out Manuel Charr, Carlos Takam, Mike Perez and Mariusz Wach. That's the best four-fight win streak in the division right now. Between them, Charr, Takam, Perez and Wach had a combined record of 108-4-2.
Wilder has received justified criticism for fighting soft opposition. But if he can handle Povetkin, he'll deserve respect as a credible belt holder.
Gennady Golovkin: Daniel Jacobs
8 of 10
For obvious reasons, the fighter Gennady Golovkin would most like to face is Saul Alvarez. With Pacquiao and Mayweather retired, Canelo is the biggest attraction in the sport. Fighting him would give Golovkin his biggest possible payday and a shot at the lineal middleweight crown.
But I'll set Canelo vs. Golovkin aside for now. I have my doubts about the fight taking place this year.
Beyond Alvarez, the fight that would make the most sense for Golovkin is Daniel Jacobs, the WBA "regular" champion at middleweight and No. 1 contender for Golovkin's "super" WBA title.
Jacobs has the best current win in the division, after he knocked out Peter Quillin in Round 1 last December. He'd have the edge in length against Golovkin and is a dangerous puncher with solid technical skill.
If Golovkin can't get the fight he wants the most, he at least needs to start making the best fights available in order to keep building his own momentum. Behind Canelo and GGG, Jacobs is the top fighter in the division.
Canelo Alvarez: Gennady Golovkin
9 of 10
Alvarez is the sport's biggest current attraction. With his pay-per-view fight against Khan coming the weekend after Cinco de Mayo, there's a chance he might even sell better than Pacquiao did against Bradley or Mayweather managed against Berto.
But Alvarez vs. Khan isn't the fight anybody really wanted. And it's not a fight that will do anything for Canelo's reputation. He's the lineal middleweight champion, but he's defending that belt at a catchweight of 155 pounds against an opponent who was knocked out at 135 and 140 pounds.
It's not a good look for a fighter who is aiming to follow in the tradition of the great Mexican ring warriors of the past.
The only credible opponent for a lineal champion is the No. 1 contender. In this case, there's no question that man is Golovkin.
If Canelo truly wants to build a legacy that can stand alongside the all-time greats, he can't avoid facing GGG.
Sergey Kovalev and Andre Ward: Each Other
10 of 10
Everything is in place for this fight to happen before the end of 2016. Sergey Kovalev fights Isaac Chilemba in Russia in July. He won't lose.
Andre Ward might fight again before he faces Kovalev. But he won't lose either.
Kovalev vs. Ward won't even approach the kind of revenue that Mayweather vs. Pacquiao earned. But for serious boxing fans, this is the bigger fight.
Mayweather vs. Pacquiao ultimately meant nothing to either man's legacy. Ward vs. Kovalev means everything to both.
For Ward, this is a chance to move up in weight and take out a feared, dominant monster. For Kovalev, it's the opportunity to defeat one of the best talents of this generation.
It's been a long time since boxing has had a bout as significant as this one.
.jpg?w=480 "Colts Jaguars Football")
