Canelo Alvarez wants Floyd Mayweather Jr. to move up to middleweight for rematch

Canelo Alvarez wants a rematch with Floyd Mayweather Jr., but this time the unified middleweight world titleholder wants the retired boxer to concede to his demands.

Since Mayweather (50-0, 27 KO's) became 'Money,' everyone has been conceding to him, including Canelo (50-1-2, 34 KO's), who agreed to fight the former five-division world champion at a catch-weight of 152-pounds in a huge September 2013 bout that generated 2.2 million pay-per-view buys and $150 million in revenue.

Mayweather dominated the fight, but won a majority decision after judge C.J. Ross scored the fight even. Ross never judged a fight again. Craig Metcalfe also had the fight 117-111, and Dave Moretti scored it 116-112 for Mayweather. Most ringside observers had the American winning all 12 rounds of the bout.

“I can’t go down further than 160 pounds,” said the 28-year-old Alvarez on a Tuesday conference call. “If that fight were to take place, it would have to be at 160 pounds.”

Mayweather has repeatedly stated that he cannot make 160 pounds, and has never boxed above the junior middleweight limit of 154 pounds, the same weight class where he scored wins against Oscar De La Hoya (2007), Miguel Cotto, and former UFC titlist Conor McGregor (2017).

If the likelihood of a rematch was not slim before, it certainly is now. Furthermore, Mayweather turns 42 years of age next February, and it would be close to four years since he has competed in a legitimate boxing match.

Canelo, who has repeatedly expressed his desire for another crack at Mayweather, says he is a much better fighter than the one that fought in 2013.

“I’m a more complete fighter now,” said Alvarez, who will move up to the super middleweight division on December 15 to take on WBA "Regular" champ Rocky Fielding at Madison Square Garden. “It’ll be much more competitive. I have more experience, I have improved a lot, so it would be different. It was experience who defeated me that night, and that’s why it was a boring fight as well, because he didn’t really do much to me, either. So it was experience. And I have more experience now, and I’m a much more mature fighter. I’m better than the fighter who fought that night.”

Mayweather could return for a three-round exhibition fight against Japanese MMA fighter Tenshin Nasukawa on New Year’s Eve inside Saitama Super Arena in Japan. To no one's surprise, no kicking will be allowed.