‘Canelo’ Alvarez’s next fight to take place in Texas, not Las Vegas

Saul “Canelo” Alvarez’s match against Liam Smith won’t be taking place in Las Vegas after all.

Golden Boy Promotions announced Monday morning that Alvarez will face Smith at AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas, the home of the Dallas Cowboys.

The bout was initially scheduled for T-Mobile Arena after Golden Boy Promotions was approved last month by the Nevada Athletic Commission to reserve the new Las Vegas venue for Sept. 17.

Bob Bennett, the NAC executive director, told the Review-Journal on Friday he was still hoping to keep the Alvarez-Smith match on the Strip. The NAC had the bout marked on its online calendar as of Monday morning.

“Texas loves Canelo, and Canelo loves Texas so it was a no-brainer to have this fight at AT&T Stadium,” said Oscar De La Hoya, the chairman and CEO of Golden Boy Promotions, in a press release. “Texas is like Canelo’s second home, and he has stated that he wants to fight in Texas once a year for his fans. My friend Jerry Jones extended the invitation to Canelo to fight at AT&T Stadium so it was an easy decision for us.”

Alvarez said he hopes to return to Las Vegas soon, possibly at the end of the year.

“A few days ago they confirmed with me,” Alvarez said about fighting in Texas. “It was down to Texas or Las Vegas. We got the fight here (Arlington), so we’re doing it here.

“I’ll be back in Vegas soon. Hopefully maybe this year to fight again, we don’t know yet, but I’ll back there quickly.”

A fight between Alvarez and Smith, an unknown British fighter, will definitely come short of selling out the 80,000-seat venue in Arlington, but it would do more than the 16,000 in attendance for Alvarez’s fight against Amir Khan at T-Mobile Arena in May. Texas has a large Latino community with many supporting the Mexican boxer.

Last year, Alvarez drew 31,588 for his fight against veteran James Kirkland at Minute Maid Park in Houston. Alvarez defeated Austin Trout in 2013 in front of 40,000 at the Alamodome in San Antonio.

Alvarez, however, has lost some of his luster with boxing fans disappointed he didn’t fight Gennady Golovkin in a middleweight showdown this fall. AT&T Stadium was rumored to be the host site if Alvarez met Golovkin. It will be interesting to see if Alvarez still commands a large crowd in Texas.

A matchup with Smith was a puzzling move for Alvarez. He’s expected to face Golovkin in the fall of 2017 and said he needed the time to work his way up to 160 pounds. Instead, Alvarez will be chasing a third belt at 154 pounds when he challenges Smith for his WBO title.

“He’s a world champion in the 154-pound division. It was the best option and we’re ready for him,” Alvarez said.

Smith, who is making his United States debut, was hoping the fight would take place in Las Vegas, a tourist friendly destination for his fans in the U.K.

“I know some of them are,” Smith said about his fans being disappointed the fight isn’t in Las Vegas. “It’s not a too bad of a flight from Vegas to Dallas.

“I was hoping it was (in Vegas), but I’ll be fine with this fight if it was in Germany, Poland or anywhere else. I was gonna take the fight anyways.”

Alvarez said he plans on competing for a middleweight championship at the end of the year. Golovkin is the IBF/WBA/WBC middleweight champion and Billy Joe Saunders owns the WBO strap.

This will be the third time AT&T Stadium hosts a boxing match. Manny Pacquiao headlined there twice in 2010 with wins against Joshua Clottey and Antonio Margarito.

In light of the recent tragic police officer shootings in Dallas, Golden Boy Promotions and the Dallas Cowboys have teamed up to donate a percentage of proceeds to a charity of the Dallas Police Department and Dallas Area Rapid Transit’s choosing.

Contact Gilbert Manzano at gmanzano@reviewjournal.com or 702-383-0492. Follow him on Twitter: @gmanzano24