“The best Canelo cannot beat a medium-rare Mayweather. No question about it." (Ecksel)

When it comes to finding a qualified voice to speak about boxing, you have to dig deep to find anyone with more experience than Miguel Diaz. As a world-class trainer and cutman, Diaz has worked with fighters like Miguel Cotto, Erik Morales and Manny Pacquiao and has been a fixture in countless corners during the last 50 years.

Diaz says he’s seen it all and pulls no punches. So when the topic of a fight between Floyd Mayweather Jr. and Canelo Alvarez came up, it was clear that he wasn’t drinking the Canelo Kool-Aid.

“The best Canelo cannot beat a medium-rare Mayweather,” he told Boxing.com. “No question about it. Mayweather will make him look like an apprentice.” Diaz concedes that Canelo is a “good” fighter and that we haven’t seen the best of him yet, but insists that the 22-year-old is nowhere near being ready to face the likes of Floyd Mayweather. “Mayweather is a master, a technician,” he said. “Canelo is all power. Skill and experience will always beat power.”

Diaz also dismisses Canelo’s victory over Josesito Lopez as meaningless because Lopez came up two weight classes from 140 to 154. Diaz claims any fighter would look strong given those circumstances. “It was like a middleweight fighting a super lightweight.” Diaz says Golden Boy has shrewdly brought Canelo along, as any great promoter should, and his popularity has soared without his having faced any significant opposition.

The subject of Mayweather’s age is often discussed. Diaz believes it will be an issue sometime in the future, but isn’t a problem now. “Mayweather is still a young fighter. He’s never used drugs or alcohol and is always in the gym, always in shape. He might have slowed down a little due to his age, but he has great radar, he sees punches coming from two yards away.”

Diaz believes a Mayweather-Canelo matchup would be a lopsided annihilation. “Mayweather would make Canelo look like a clown in a circus,” he said. “Mayweather will destroy Canelo.”

Mayweather has advantages in skill and experience, but there are some who think that heart and determination can overcome almost anything. And fortunately for Canelo, heart and determination are attributes he has in spades.

The most telling sign of Canelo’s readiness is the sudden about-face of his promoter and mentor Oscar De La Hoya. The Golden Boy himself had been reluctant to have Canelo face Mayweather but has recently had a change of heart after Canelo’s “coming out party” against Lopez. “He’s ready to take on Mayweather or anybody else,” De La Hoya told The Boxing Lab. Golden Boy CEO Richard Schaefer says he has also seen the light when it comes to Canelo. The post-fight press conference found Schaefer positively gushing about the young champion. “You saw the quality,” he said. “You saw the reactions from fans, the electricity in the air. It was maybe one of the best nights of boxing Golden Boy has ever put on.”

Schaefer said Golden Boy’s matchmakers will tell him when Canelo is ready for Mayweather, but he feels there’s little reason to hold the young champion back. God forbid Canelo would suffer a loss to Mayweather, but he’s young enough to pick up the pieces and resume his career. And if that mega fight were to happen, it would be the biggest draw in the sport in many years. Canelo would undoubtedly provide the stiffest competition for Mayweather since De La Hoya and would most likely not only show well but might have a chance to hand Mayweather his first loss. It promises to be a fight for the ages.

“Other promoters believe in marinating,” Schaefer said. “I don’t. You never know what’s going to happen in life. If there’s an opportunity to have a big fight, and it’s something that fans want to see, I think you have an obligation to your fighter to get him in there.”

Miguel Diaz believes Canelo needs a few more fights under his belt against quality opposition before jumping in the ring with Floyd Mayweather. Even then he believes Mayweather is so superior that Canelo has no chance against the P4P king. Canelo Alvarez with no chance? Once again, it’s Miguel Diaz against the world as Canelo, De La Hoya and millions of Mexican fans believe Canelo is ready to shock the world.