Adonis Stevenson’s uninspiring rematch with Andrejz Fonfara takes place June 3rd on Showtime. As rumored, it will be paired with Eleider Alvarez (22-0, 11 KOs) versus Jean Pascal (31-4-1, 18 KOs). Alvarez is Stevenson’s mandatory, but he paid him step aside money so he could instead rematch Andrejz Fonfara in a fight no one was asking to see again.
After the two beatings Jean Pascal took from Sergei Kovalev, it is hard not to be concerned about his future in the sport. In between he was lucky to get a decision against Yunieski Gonzales, a man most would consider a light night for a non-damaged Jean Pascal. Pascal has not looked good in a complete fight since a 2014 clear decision win over fellow Montreal based contender Lucian Bute. He looked especially done in the Kovalev rematch.
Thankfully, the body of work that Eleider Alvarez has put together largely shows a man who probably isn’t going to worry about doing too much further damage to Jean Pascal. Though he showed some spirit in his most recent bout in stopping an older version of Lucian Bute, the Montreal based Colombian has been historically content to comfortably and safely outbox his opponents. Alvarez is skilled enough that he should be able to do this against Pascal.
Should Alvarez and Stevenson win as expected, it is difficult to see a scenario in which Adonis Stevenson continues fighting and isn’t forced to either face Alvarez or vacate, but I wouldn’t count it out completely. Where there is an Adonis Stevenson, there is a way to avoid a potentially difficult fight.
