Kamaru Usman is targeting a September boxing match against Canelo Alvarez.
Usman has talked about wanting to box Alvarez for quite some time and the goal for him is to finish Leon Edwards in July and then turn to boxing. If he does finish Edwards, Usman believes a bout against Alvarez makes a ton of sense and would be a big payday for both men.
“In 2022, I’m gonna shock the world,” Usman told TMZ Sports. “July, International Fight Week, I’m gonna fight Leon Edwards. God willing I get through Leon Edwards, September, Mexican Independence Day, I will stop Canelo Alvarez.
“Absolutely I see myself winning that fight. And that’s the thing that a lot of people fail to realize. A lot of people, because they think they can’t do something, they try to put that upon you. ‘Oh, you can’t do that. It can’t be done.’ Everything can’t be done until it’s done,” Usman continued.
“So a lot of people are gonna say, ‘You can’t do it. No, he’s too good, he’s too skilled, too strong.’ Yeah, they said that about Tyron Woodley. He’s too big, he’s got knockout power, he’s fast, he’s explosive. What happened? I told him I was gonna dominate him for five rounds and I did that. I’m not gonna step in there if I don’t think I can get it done.”
Why Kamaru Usman believes he has a good shot at facing Canelo Alvarez as it would be a massive payday for the Mexican. It would be the top pound-for-pound UFC fighter vs. boxer and even with that, it’s a fight that Usman believes he would win.
“Boxing is dead at the end of the day and I’m not saying there’s not good boxers, there’s some fantastic boxers,” Usman said. “Errol Spence Jr., I mean there’s a ton of guys that I could go down and really tell you that are fantastic fighters. But boxing is dying. At the end of the day, everybody wants to be entertained. And when have you ever seen the pound-for-pound against the pound-for-pound?
“He’s walking around saying payday, payday… absolutely. It’s the biggest payday you are ever gonna make. I understand that he gets paid, he makes money,” Usman continued. “But fighting me is the biggest payday he’s ever gonna make. We talking nine figures, for sure.”
Whether or not Kamaru Usman will actually box Canelo Alvarez next time out is to be seen.
