Edgar Berlanga says Eddie Hearn told him he’d line him up with a fight against Canelo Alvarez after his next two bouts as part of his three-fight deal with Matchroom Boxing.
Even at this stage, 40-year-old Gennadiy Golovkin would be too much for Berlanga, and Jaime Munguia would be a total nightmare. Hearn isn’t going to let Berlanga walk the plank and be eaten up by those two sharks. They have too many elements to their game for Berlanga to deal with, and it would be bad for Matchroom to make those fights.
Berlanga (20-0, 16 KOs) says he believes he’ll do four fights with Matchroom, with the first two to earn the Canelo fight, and after he beats him, there will be a rematch for the fourth fight.
The reality is, Berlanga will not need to beat Golovkin or Munguia to get the Canelo fight because his next opponent is rumored to be 36-year-old Daniel Jacobs, who arguably has been over the hill for several years.
We just saw Jacobs lose to John Ryder last year, and he’s now been out of the ring for the last 12 months since that defeat. If Jacobs is one of the two fighters Berlanga has to beat to earn a Canelo fight, Hearn might as well skip it and go straight to the Mexican star because Edgar isn’t going to fool the boxing public that he’s earned the match if he’s going to be fed washed up fighters like Jacobs.
Hearn obviously isn’t going to make it tough on Berlanga to earn the Canelo fight because that would be shooting himself in the foot. The British promoter Hearn is paying Berlanga a lot of money as part of his three-fight contract with Matchroom Boxing.
If he puts Berlanga in with a good 168-pounder or even a 160-pounder, he’ll likely get beat, and he’d have nothing to show for signing the New Yorker.
Top Rank realized that Berlanga isn’t ready to be moved up against B-level opposition, and that’s why they wanted him back after his four consecutive poor performances.
The final straw was when Berlanga struggled against Roamer Alexis Angulo last June and attempted to bite him. After that fight, Top Rank wanted to move Berlanga to undercard fights and match him up against Jesse Hart, which he reportedly balked at.
In hindsight, there’s an excellent chance Hart would have beaten Berlanga, so perhaps it was a good move on his part to refuse the fight.
Berlanga 2 wins away from Canelo
“It was that [Canelo Alvarez], getting to that fight,” said Edgar Berlanga to the DAZN Boxing Show when asked what the determining factor was for him to sign with Eddie Hearn’s Matchroom company.
“I feel like Munguia and GGG,” said Berlanga to earn Canelo fight. “GGG, he just finished fighting Canelo. Munguia, he’s Mexican, and he’s young. He’s a real Mexican. He already did the numbers. I seen what he did when he beat [Gabe] Rosado in main events and stuff.
“So, I feel like Munguia and GGG. Munguia he mentioned. As a matter of fact, he did mention GGG. That could be a big fight. We got a three-fight deal with him [Hearn]. It’s like a four-fight deal. We got two fights, and we beat Canelo, and then the rematch clause. We got a rematch.
“I just seen where Matchroom posted that they’re trying to make Bivol vs. Beterbiev in June. That’s a fireworks fight right there. I’m just happy to be with Matchroom and to be with Dazn with you guys.
“Eddie Hearn is a goat. He made it happen. He’s a legend. He came from overseas to the U.S. and took over. I would say, but I don’t think I have the authority to say. We’re looking at a fight date right now, and an opponent locked in already,” said Berlanga when asked if he could reveal who his next fight will be against.
“I’m going to hold back on this.I’m just waiting for Matchroom and my dad to say that I can do it.
Hearn promised Berlanga Canelo
“We sat down with Eddie Hearn, and he said, ‘Champ, you got two to these next two fights, and I’ll line you up with that fight.’ He said, ‘it’s a massive fight. It’s Puerto Rico vs. Mexico. You already got that experience you need. A little more season, and then you’re ready for that big step.’
“What I love about them is they actually care about their fighters. The stuff I was bringing up, ‘I’m an entertainer. I want to do this. I want my walkout entrance.’ ‘Yeah, whatever you want. We’re up for everything.’
“The opponents too. Giving us the right opponent for the right money. Not fighting tough opponents for low money. Fighting decent opponents that will get me to the level for the big fights, and getting me paid at the same time.
“Oscar [De La Hoya offered two good things. The money. If he could have got to the Canelo route. He was bringing up Munguia, which is a hell of a fight for me. That’s a big fight, me and Munguia. Puerto Rico vs. Mexico.
“He said that, but I know him and Canelo are beefing,” said Berlanga about De La Hoya telling him he could get him the Canelo fight. “We were trying to see if maybe that wouldn’t happen because of Canelo.
“We chose Matchroom. I felt Matchroom had the better offer and better relationship as far as business. I was depressed. It had been almost a year since my last fight. Dealing with a suspension, injuries and my first time getting bashed on social media with people hating on me.
“I’m not used to that. Now, I’m actually getting hate. Floyd made millions of dollars in boxing, and people just hated him and paying to see him lose. Floyd called me up, Al Haymon, Oscar, Eddie, and I even got hit up by BLK Prime as well.
“They did. They just wanted to see what we wanted,” said Berlanga when asked if Haymon & PBC called him to try and sign him. “I felt like it wasn’t the right moment for that now. I felt like the right moment is with Matchroom and DAZN.