Canelo Alvarez reportedly rejects PBC deal in favor of Dmitry Bivol fight

Canelo Alvarez is now one-step closer to finalizing his return to the ring. The Mexican superstar has reportedly declined an offer from PBC, instead opting to fight Dmitry Bivol next.

The past few months have been rife with speculation about what Alvarez's next move will be. It first seemed that he was going to attempt to become a five-division titleholder by challenging Ilunga Makabu for his WBC cruiserweight strap. However, that deal fell apart when he was forced to fight a mandatory first.

Since the Makabu deal collapsed, Alvarez has been courted by two different parties. The first being Premier Boxing Champions, who offered the Mexican superstar a two-fight deal to fight Jermall Charlo and then David Benavidez.

Another offer came from Eddie Hearn's Matchroom to fight Dmitry Bivol before a trilogy bout against Gennady Golovkin. It seems that Alvarez has settled on the second option, according to ESPN's Mike Coppinger.

The Unfied Super-Middleweight Champion is seemingly settled on chasing after the Bivol and Golovkin fights next. Posting Coppinger's report on Twitter, Michael Benson wrote:

"Canelo Alvarez has reportedly rejected the two-fight deal from Al Haymon's PBC to fight Jermall Charlo, then David Benavidez. It's said he's focussed on completing the two-fight deal with Eddie Hearn for Dmitry Bivol, then Gennady Golovkin. [According to @MikeCoppinger]"

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Canelo Alvarez has been out of the ring since his November 2021 victory over Caleb Plant

Canelo Alvarez's return to the ring is sure to be one of the biggest storylines of 2022. His last outing occurred in November 2021 against Caleb Plant in a bid to become the Unified Super-Middleweight Champion.

The fight's build-up saw the normally-collected Alvarez lose his cool. 'Sweet Hands' and the Mexican superstar both talked trash, leading to a notable press conference brawl between the two champs. Despite Plant being a relatively downplayed challenger, the IBF Champion wasn't going to let his gold go easily.

Alvarez entered the bout as a massive favorite, as is tradition. However, 'Sweet Hands' showed exactly why he has the nickname early on. Plant was outboxing his foe, showcasing a great jab and keeping Alvarez on the end of his punches. The IBF titlist had an early lead that few expected.

However, Alvarez soon came roaring back. The Mexican began targeting the body ruthlessly and quickly began wearing on the underdog. By the time the 11th round arrived, Alvarez was in complete control and quickly dropped Plant. While he was able to rise to his feet, he only stayed there for a few more seconds before he was dropped again in what was a fight-ending knockdown.

With the victory, Canelo became only the sixth fighter to unify all the titles in a single weight class in the four-belt era. Now just months away from his ring return, Canelo Alvarez will look to make history again against WBA Light-Heavyweight Champion Dmitry Bivol.