The Hype with Saul Alverez (apologies if spelt incorrectly!)

[oakleyno1]

I dont get it!?!?! He had had a draw, admittedly early in his career, two or 3 split decisions, and went the distance against Matthew Hatton, almost against Rhodes and more. Watching the Hatton fight the commentators were going mad saying how heavy his hands are etc and he is rated as the top welterweight prospect by most!? Now again he is only 20 BUT I dont get the hype at all for the reasons above (and I thought he did actually look pretty decent against Hatton) but everyone seems to be bigging him up and so on and i wondered why!?!!

Who can tell me lol and additionally surely he wont stand a chance vs pac... who thinks differently?

[ono]

I dont get it!?!?! He had had a draw, admittedly early in his career, two or 3 split decisions, and went the distance against Matthew Hatton, almost against Rhodes and more. Watching the Hatton fight the commentators were going mad saying how heavy his hands are etc and he is rated as the top welterweight prospect by most!? Now again he is only 20 BUT I dont get the hype at all for the reasons above (and I thought he did actually look pretty decent against Hatton) but everyone seems to be bigging him up and so on and i wondered why!?!!

Who can tell me lol and additionally surely he wont stand a chance vs pac... who thinks differently?

He's only 20 and he's already this good. I think that's where the hype stems from.

[oakleyno1]

The thing with being 'this good' as you say though is that he doesnt seem to be 'that good'. Perhaps im being harsh but any good up and coming fighter should be beating hatton and rhodes, they are gatekeepers. if he had taken them out in 3 or 4 rounds each fair enough but apart from have alot of pro fights, which he has had a few sd's i dont see what he has done to stand out as an outstanding prospect people on here and max kellerman rate him as

[Kev]

I really think the hype is 90% due to his unusual for a Mexican red hair and freckles. He's a novelty act. Going 12 rounds in successive fights with Lovemore Ndou, Matthew Hatton and Ryan Rhodes really doesn't speak power puncher to me.

So far all the fights I've seen him in have bored me.

I don't regard Adrian Broner as a power puncher really yet he destroyed a better opponent, in a single round and has a higher KO percentage than Canelo too.

At only 21 though you have to assume that he will get better. I imagine by the time he is 23/34 he will be a very solid fighter and tough to beat.

Right now they will need to keep matching him carefully.

I think Cintron would beat him right now.

[Rantcatrat]

Oakley, I completely see where you are coming from. Alvarez has looked good, not great, yet he is headlining HBO shows, doing impressive television ratings and selling out soccer stadiums. He's a rock star in Mexico. Generally, when prospects move up the ranks to facing top 10-20 boxers, they are fighting on ESPN2 or the undercard of HBO after dark shows. For example, Vanes Martirosyan is a former US Olympian of a similar world ranking as Alvarez who hasn't got near the exposure. Something doesn't add up. Much the same with Chavez Jr. You are correct that it has a lot to do with the novelty of a fair-skinned, red-haired Mexican.

All that said, he is only 20, we should give him time to develop. He doesn't belong in the ring with any top boxer at 154 now or in the near future. He wouldn't beat Angulo, Dzinziruk, or Cotto. However, as boxing fans, we should embrace him to an extent because his popularity is good for the sport. Let's just not allow the hype surrounding him to cloud our judgment of his actual boxing skill level. A good test for him is his mandatory - Vanes Martirosyan.

[Spicoli]

He is a very methodical strong kid with solid head and body attack. He also has great promotional ties and def is being groomed as the next golden child of sorts. The buzz is warranted but the hype can be blinding in this sport. He has had solid showcase platforms afforded to him on HBO against two spirited heavy bags and frankly it wasn't a question of 'who' but 'when' going into those. You could almost see him working on things in there, not exactly carrying them late but feeling and learning stamina which I get the feeling might be an issue. He has the best of both worlds with massive exposure, a world title and has not had to fight monsters to get it. He's been carefully matched for a guy with 38 fights, I dont care if he's 13 or 20. Hype and anointing a quality talent on a massive stage can be their downfall as everything is emphasized and undoubtedly scrutinized but he has got people talking and generated buzz so there is no going back now. Its time to step it up in comp.

[marbleheadmaui]

The thing with being 'this good' as you say though is that he doesnt seem to be 'that good'. Perhaps im being harsh but any good up and coming fighter should be beating hatton and rhodes, they are gatekeepers. if he had taken them out in 3 or 4 rounds each fair enough but apart from have alot of pro fights, which he has had a few sd's i dont see what he has done to stand out as an outstanding prospect people on here and max kellerman rate him as

He's vastly further along at 20 than almost anyone else in boxing is or has been recently. So he has 6-7 more years before he reaches his physical peak to learn. But you've identified him properly. He's a prospect.

[Fenster]

The thing with being 'this good' as you say though is that he doesnt seem to be 'that good'. Perhaps im being harsh but any good up and coming fighter should be beating hatton and rhodes, they are gatekeepers. if he had taken them out in 3 or 4 rounds each fair enough but apart from have alot of pro fights, which he has had a few sd's i dont see what he has done to stand out as an outstanding prospect people on here and max kellerman rate him as

He's vastly further along at 20 than almost anyone else in boxing is or has been recently. So he has 6-7 more years before he reaches his physical peak to learn. But you've identified him properly. He's a prospect.

Alvarez is a good modern-day example of your theory that more fights means superior craft, right? Considering the level he is already at - top ten division rated and "world" champion - you must expect him to achieve great things (as long as he doesn't become a drug addict or a drunk or whatever)?

I will confidently predict that Alvarez will be on the slide, if not finished, in 6/7 years time let alone at his peak. Even if he produces great form in the next few years.

37 fights at 20-years-old, already a "world" champion, can sell 15,000 tickets and is headlining HBO productions. He is already in a position where he is forced to face top opposition amongst the "gimmes." Considering losses are more detrimental these days, he is a huge underdog to hand around that long. No?

[marbleheadmaui]

The thing with being 'this good' as you say though is that he doesnt seem to be 'that good'. Perhaps im being harsh but any good up and coming fighter should be beating hatton and rhodes, they are gatekeepers. if he had taken them out in 3 or 4 rounds each fair enough but apart from have alot of pro fights, which he has had a few sd's i dont see what he has done to stand out as an outstanding prospect people on here and max kellerman rate him as

He's vastly further along at 20 than almost anyone else in boxing is or has been recently. So he has 6-7 more years before he reaches his physical peak to learn. But you've identified him properly. He's a prospect.

Alvarez is a good modern-day example of your theory that more fights means superior craft, right? Considering the level he is already at - top ten division rated and "world" champion - you must expect him to achieve great things (as long as he doesn't become a drug addict or a drunk or whatever)?

I will confidently predict that Alvarez will be on the slide, if not finished, in 6/7 years time let alone at his peak. Even if he produces great form in the next few years.

37 fights at 20-years-old, already a "world" champion, can sell 15,000 tickets and is headlining HBO productions. He is already in a position where he is forced to face top opposition amongst the "gimmes." Considering losses are more detrimental these days, he is a huge underdog to hand around that long. No?

More fights means superior craft for a given fighter sure. Meaning Alvarez is further along than Alvarez would be had he fought only twenty times. It says some very sad things about the state of the sport that Alvarez is ranked, let alone some sort of titleholder. The guy is a prospect.

The question is does the guy have natural talent? Thus far he seems to have at least some. He's a satisfactory puncher, he has shown the ability to learn and he seems to like fighting. Of course he doesn't have exceptional speed and his craft is not nearly fully developed yet. He really needs to concentrate on keeping his head moving.

I don't know where he'll be in 6-7 years. We seem to have stopped making quality middles these days.

[0james0]

To be fair to Alvarez he didn't even try and take either Hatton or Rhodes out early, it was never part of his game plan to apply pressure for long periods. He was patient and simply better.

Name another 20 year old that is either that good or has had that many pro fights? He looks very composed and his shots look like they sting and his body isn't even finished growing yet.

I can see exactly why there is so much hype and I think he is doing the right thing. Beating 2 Brits on the bounce helps give him exposure in the UK and I'm sure he will strategically take on other fighters around this level to make him a household name across the globe, before stepping up to the world class operators, instead of the national class guys.