Alvarez vacates WBC title, still pursuing Golovkin fight

Updated Mar. 4, 2020 2:26 p.m. ET

foxsports

LOS ANGELES (AP) Canelo Alvarez vacated his WBC middleweight title Wednesday rather than be pressured into a deal to fight Gennady Golovkin, though Alvarez said in a statement he still wants to face the unified titleholder.

The WBC had imposed a Tuesday deadline for making a fight between the two champions, and Alvarez did not want to negotiate terms for the biggest fight boxing has to offer under such a time constraint.

The decision means Golovkin will have the interim tag removed from his WBC title.

Alvarez said he has instructed his promoter, Oscar de la Hoya, to continue negotiating for a fight with Golovkin and ''to finalize a deal as quickly as possible.''

The likely date for their fight had been Sept. 17, potentially at AT&T Stadium near Dallas.