Guadalajara’s most promising boxing prospect Saul “Canelo” Alvarez was allegedly involved in a bust-up outside of the ring this week.
The 108-pound IBF champion Archie Solis claims the 154-pound WBC junior middleweight champion attacked him at a training facility in Guadalajara on Tuesday, leaving him with a broken jaw and a cracked tooth.
Solis said he was training when Alvarez confronted him and accused him of involvement with his girlfriend, before attacking him with multiple punches.
“I ran into Alvarez after training and I moved to the side to let him pass,” Solis told El Universal newspaper. “But he ran into me. He asked me, ‘Why are you messing around with my woman?’ I told him that I don’t even know her and all of a sudden he hit me with a left and right hook that fractured my jaw. I fell back and he hit me with two more punches, to the temple and the chest.”
Solis was taken to hospital Tuesday night to undergo surgery and will now miss his scheduled title defense in December. Alvarez has denied the allegations and claimed it was his brother who attacked the other boxer.
Ahead of his fight with Puerto Rico’s Kermit Cintron scheduled for November 26 in Mexico City, Alvarez appeared at a press conference in the capital on Wednesday alongside Jose Sulaiman, the president of the World Boxing Council.
Alvarez reiterated his innocence, declaring, “if I had anything to fear I would not be here and I would have canceled everything, but I have not.”
Sulaiman also backed the Tapatio boxer, saying “Saul is a good boy, he’s never been in any trouble. My champion says he is innocent and I believe him.”
Solis’ promoter, Fernando Beltran of Zanfer Promotions, was not so easily convinced and said criminal charges will be pursued against Alvarez, as well as a civil lawsuit seeking damages.
“It’s sad because Canelo is denying everything,” Beltran said. “Finally he fought a good fighter, except it took place in the street.”
Beltran continued, “(Solis) is going to proceed with a lawsuit because it’s not fair. He had a fight scheduled for December and now his year is over. Maybe it’s the end of his career? Who knows if he can fight again? It’s sad that a champion at 154 pounds would do this to another champion at 108.”
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