‘Canelo’ Alvarez is 1.8 pounds overweight for title fight, has two hours to lose it

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Saul ‘Canelo’ Alvarez weighed in at 151.8 pounds minutes ago, 1.8 pounds over the contractually agreed-upon catch weight for his Saturday night World Boxing Council junior-middleweight title fight against England’s Matthew Hatton.

The unbeaten Alvarez, 20, was given two hours to shed the weight or he’ll be penalized 20% of his $350,000 purse, with 10% ($35,000) going to Hatton and the other $35,000 to the California State Athletic Commission.

‘He’s on the treadmill right now,’ Golden Boy Promotions matchmaker Eric Gomez said.

British papers earlier this week reported Hatton’s concerns about Alvarez’s weight, with the fighter’s older brother and former two-division champion Ricky Hatton saying he’d consider backing out of the fight entirely is Alvarez came in too much over 150.

The junior-middleweight limit is 154 pounds, but Matthew Hatton has never fought above welterweight (147 pounds). He weighed in Friday at 149.6 pounds.

Matthew Hatton wasn’t as concerned as his brother/promoter about the situation Thursday, telling The Times, ‘I’m sure he’ll come in at 150. If he doesn’t, we’ll cross that bridge when we come to it.’ Hatton’s father, Ray, said Thursday, ‘The fight has to take place under 154. It will. We’ll be OK.’

Golden Boy’s Gomez said there was no talk after Friday’s weigh-in of scratching the fight.

‘Canelo has to lose weight or it’s a 20% fine,’ Gomez said.

--Lance Pugmire