Canelo Alvarez stands at the pinnacle of the boxing world. There might not be any name as big as his in the boxing community right now, and the gold straps around his waist only add to his allure. But the IBF took one of them from him for not fighting his mandatory William Scull. The Mexican champion believes he made himself championship-worthy, not the other way around.

Alvarez, 34, has faced flak for not fighting the name the fans want him to face, David Benavidez. But with four straps and only two fights a year, he could only do so much. What’s more? He believes he has fought his way to stardom and now deserves to have his way. Alvarez, at 61-2-2, has questioned the IBF’s decision to take away his title as he weighs it against his popularity and his title of ‘face of boxing’. Did Scull fit the bill as his opponent? Did fans want to see the fight?

Alvarez doubted that. He expressed the same when he sat down for an interview with ‘Million Dollaz Worth of Game’. Drawing parallels with the likes of Floyd Mayweather Jr. and Mike Tyson, he pointed out that all the superstars fought, whom they thought were better for their business and resume, not for holding onto their championships after they had cemented their hold on the top. The Guadalajara native said, “[Oscar] De La Hoya, Floyd Mayweather, Julio Cesar Chavez, Mike Tyson, everybody did this. There are stars and superstars, and they made the championship, not the championship made them.”

“The IBF [says], ‘Hey, you need to fight with this because this.’ Who’s [William] Scull? I never hear about him… I’m not gonna do whatever they want, I want to do what I want. In this position, I can do whatever I want. Because I deserve it, because of all I did,” Alvarez added.

While he is one of the biggest stars in the boxing world, he will go against the Noche UFC on the same weekend, as both events share the same date. But he has confidence in his fan base, his fame, and his name.

Canelo Alvarez has faith in his star power to topple Noche UFC

In the same interview, Alvarez shed light on sharing the same night as Noche UFC, which will happen a few blocks away from his fight in T-Mobile Arena. The UFC has booked the Sphere and has already spent $17 million on the promotion. But the super middleweight champion is undeterred. He declared, “Maybe other boxing matches, maybe, but Canelo is different. There are other kind of fights, but Canelo is just different. I don’t care if the UFC is there, when Canelo fights, it’s different.”

It remains to be seen how well Alvarez’s fight with Edgar Berlanga fares on the business side of things. The fans have asked questions about his decision to fight Berlanga, but he looks to cash in on the Mexico vs. Puerto Rico rivalry to make the event successful. Will his plan be successful? The fans will find out on September 14.

What do you make of this statement by Canelo Alvarez about IBF stripping him off? Do you believe it was the right call? Let us know in the comments below.