Janibek Alimkhanuly hasn’t become a superstar just yet but there’s still time on the clock to check off that box.
Candidly, the middleweight division isn’t nearly as hot as it once was. Jermall Charlo has long been out of the picture. Gennadiy Golovkin is essentially retired, Daniel Jacobs officially hung up his gloves last year, and even a guy like Demetrius Andrade got up and left the division a while ago.
The new faces that Alimkhanuly has to deal with such as Erislandy Lara and Carlos Adames, have yet to jump in the ring with him. Two titles, however, haven’t given his fellow champions much incentive for a unification. Although the 31-year-old will look to defend his IBF and WBO middleweight belts against Anauel Ngamissengue on April 5th, Alimkhanuly is ready to ditch his undisputed aspirations for a big payday and an even bigger opportunity against Canelo Alvarez.
Moving to Alvarez’s super middleweight territory isn’t something to worry about according to Alimkhanuly. While he might be forfeiting some size and strength, handing Alvarez those advantages won’t do much for him if they meet up.
For the Mexican star, he might be unfamiliar with Alimkhanuly. With the 34-year-old giving William Scull, his upcoming opponent, all of his attention, Alimkhanuly is the furthest thing from his mind.
In addition to Alvarez looking to knock off Scull to become a two-time undisputed champion, Terence Crawford’s name is waiting in the queue.
As first reported by The Ring, Alvarez, if he’s successful against Scull, would face Crawford immediately after. At no point has Alvarez been considered an easy night at the office for anyone, even in his losses. But that’s strictly because he’s yet to face someone like Alimkhanuly. If the pound-for-pound star were willing to give him a chance on the big stage, he believes he would prove that he’s levels above him.
“That would be easy for me,” said Alimkhanuly during an interview with Seconds Out. “That would be easy for me.”