Lem's latest: C. Molina wants Alvarez

RingTV.com spoke to junior middleweight contender Carlos Molina, a 29-year-old Mexican-born Chicago resident,

Molina (19-5-2, 6 knockouts) wants to enter his name into the hat to face Mexican star and WBC titleholder Saul "Canelo" Alvarez (40-0-1, 29 KOs) on Sept. 15 at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas, this, after a succession of potential foes have failed to materialize for Alvarez.

"It would be like a Mexican civil war," said Molina, who is coming off a controversial 10th-round disqualification loss to southpaw James Kirkland (30-1-1, 27 KOs) on HBO. "So I feel like with Canelo, I'm the next guy that should get that fight."

Kirkland is among a series of left-handed opponents who had been considered for Alvarez, including former three-time titleholder Paul Williams (41-2, 27 KOs) and Victor Ortiz (29-4-2, 22 KOs).

"You know, I felt like I was beating Kirkland all throughout the fight, and I never got the rematch with Kirkland," said Molina, a right-handed fighter. "I think that I'm a very, very deserving opponent for a fight with Canelo, especially after he was going to fight Kirkland."

Alvarez was initially slated to face Williams before Williams suffered a career-ending motorcycle accident on May 27 that is believed to have left him paralyzed from the waist down.

Next in line was Kirkland, who cited recovery from shoulder surgery on his right arm and money as his reasons for not taking the bout.

And then there was Ortiz, whose opportunity was foiled following a ninth-round knockout loss to Josesito Lopez  (29-4, 18 KOs) on June 23 during which Ortiz suffered a broken jaw.

In addition, Ortiz was operated on to stablize his right jaw this past Sunday, his mouth having been wired shut and both a metal plate and screws having been inserted.

Alvarez has apparently narrowed his choices down to two, however, his promoter, Golden Boy CEO Richard Schaefer, has declined to name the favored fighters. 

It has been widely speculated, as well, that left-handed WBA "regular" titleholder Austin Trout (25-0, 14 KOs) and IBF beltholder Cornelius Bundrage (31-4, 18 KOs) are the top options for Alvarez.

Alvarez was at ringside at the Home Depot Center, in Carson, Calif., on June 2 when Trout  defended his belt by unanimous decision over Delvin Rodriguez.

Bundrage has Saturday night's Showtime-televised rematch in defense of his belt with ex-beltholder Cory Spinks, whom Bundrage dethroned by fifth-round stoppage in August of 2010.

Bundrage's manager, Manny Steward, informed RingTV.com that he expects to meet with officials from Golden Boy Promotions on Thursday.

But Molina believes he should be in the mix, having been on the bubble of achieving noteriety throughout much of his career.

Molina has endured a draw as well as a six-round majority decision loss against current WBC middleweight beltholder Julio Cesar Chavez Jr. in December of 2005 and 2006, respectively, and took an unbeaten streak of 11-0-1 with just two stoppages into the fight with Kirkland.

Molina's run includes a victory over former welterweight beltholder Kermit Cintron in July of last year and a draw with then-unbeaten Erislandy Lara in March of last year.

On the same nght as Molina-Cintron, Lara lost a majority decision to Williams that most ringsiders believed Lara has won.

Between the bouts with Cintron and Lara, Molina scored a seventh-round stoppage of Allen Conyers in April of last year.

During his streak, Molina has also vanquished welterweight fringe contender Ed Paredes by unanimous decision in April of 2009. Paredes has gone 9-0-1 with seven knockouts since falling to Molina.

Molina's last loss prior to Kirkland was by eight-round, majority decision against current unbeaten junior welterweight contender Mike Alvarado.

"Paul Williams, that was a tragedy, you know? That's really bad. I really feel for him. Kirkland, he wanted more money and didn't take the fight or whatever. And then we know what happened to Ortiz. So, now, who else is he going to fight out there at 154 pounds?" asked Molina.

"So I'm just continuing to train for my health and, of course, for whatever pops up. If there is a big fight or something, like a Canelo, then I'm telling you, man, I would be ready to go."

ANTONIO OROZCO FACES ALBERTO CRUZ

Unbeaten Mexican-born welterweight Antonio "The Simple Man" Orozco (14-0, 10 KOs) will pursue his third straight stoppage victory on Saturday night when he meets Puerto Rico's hard-hitting Alberto Cruz (9-3, 8 KOs) as part of a ShoBox: The Next Generation tripleheader at Fantasy Springs Resort Casino in Indio, Calif.
 
Orozco will be televised in his eight-round clash of 24-year-olds against Cruz on the undercard of the main event featuring Bundrage and Spinks.

AVA KNIGHT DEFENDS HER IBF FLYWEIGHT BELT

Ava Knight, a 23-year-old out of Chico, Calif., with a record of 8-1-3 that includes five knockouts, will defend her IBF flyweight belt against Susana Vazquez on Saturday at the Auditorio Centenario in Zaragoza, Mex.

HARD-HITTING HUGO RUIZ WANTS TO FACE THE BEST

Mexico's Hugo "Cuatito" Ruiz (30-1, 27 KOs) will take on Jean Sampson (12-1, 7 KOs) of Nicaragua in an interim WBA bantamweight clash on July 7 that is sponsored by promoter Sampson Lewkowicz in association with Promosiones Del Pueblo, HG Boxing and ECO boxing.

The fight is sponsored by Grupo Modelo and broadcast by Televisa on its Sabado de Corona Boxing series,. Ruiz is just 25, and Sampson, 22 and coming off a victory over former two-time titleholder Rosendo Alvarez in May.

Managed by Fernando Dominguez, Ruiz wants to challenge fighters such as WBO junior featherweight titleholder Nonito Donaire and WBC junior featherweight beltholder Abner Mares.

LENNOX ALLEN RETURNS FROM A LONG LAYOFF

Undefeated super-middleweight prospect Lennox Allen (15-0-1, 9 KOs), a native of Guyana who is living in New York, returns to the ring on July 14 against Michael Walker (19-14-3, 12 KOs) in a six-rond bout at Rivers Casino in Pittsburgh.

Allen, 27, is coming a victory over Kwesi Jones (9-2, 5 KOs) in May of last year and is looking to shake off the ring rust.

"I'm eager to get back in the ring and march toward title contention after being out of the ring for so long. Michael Walker brings a lot of experience to the ring, and he's fought some very good fighters," said Allan.

"This will be a good challenge for me and I've trained very hard to be successful in this fight.  It's been a long layoff but I'm confident in my ability to come out on top.  I'm ready to perform at a high level."

Allen's promoter, Mario Yagobi and Boxing 360, want to position their fighter for a title shot.

"Lennox is a good fighter with a lot of talent, but he's had a few bumps in his career. I'm looking to keep him busy and get him in a big fight very soon," said Yagobi.

"I want him to fight a couple of more times so he can get accustomed to fighting on a regular basis.  He'll be ready to fight for a regional title by early next year."

Photos by Chris Cozzone, Fightwireimages.com

Photo by Lorin Chvotkin

Lem Satterfield can be reached at lemuel.satterfield@gmail.com