Canelo Alvarez to face lesser-known Cuban boxer in next fight

Undisputed super middleweight king Canelo Alvarez has been ordered to face IBF mandatory challenger William Scull.

The development was confirmed on Tuesday morning by Scull’s promoter AGON Sports & Events, who shared the news on social media.

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“The IBF has ordered the fight between Canelo and William Scull,” the statement begins.

“Both teams have 4 weeks to reach an agreement, otherwise the offer will be accepted.”

Scull isn’t a name many fans are familiar with.

He became mandatory for Canelo’s IBF after scoring a unanimous decision win over Evgeny Shvedenko in July 2022 and has largely flown under the radar in a 168-pound weight class loaded with quality.

The Cuban boxer hasn’t fought anyone serious during his 22-fight professional career (22-0, 9 KOs), with Shvedenko – a fringe world-level super-middleweight contender – being the best operator he’s faced .

His most recent outing came during the non-televised portion of Canelo’s final fight against Jaime Munguia earlier this month.

“El Indomable” defeated Sean Hamphill (16-2, 10 KOs) on points.

Canelo is expected to return to the ring in September following his decision victory over Munguia.

Edgar Berlanga, Canelo’s WBA proxy, has been touted as the favorite to face the Mexican superstar, as the WBA is ahead of the IBF in the sanctioning body rotation system.

However, the WBA has yet to order Canelo to box Berlanga as of this writing.

Berlanga was made WBA mandatory last month after the former WBA (regular) 168-pound champion announced he would move up to light heavyweight to face Radivoje Kalajdzic for the interim belt in June.

The 26-year-old, like Scully, is 22-0 in the paid ranks, although he has a much higher finishing rate with 17 knockouts in his 22 wins.

Berlanga has also boxed mostly fringe contenders at the world level with his best win coming against former IBO light-heavyweight champion Padraig McCrory last time out in February.