By Keith Idec

A third bout between Canelo Alvarez and Gennady Golovkin seems to be a foregone conclusion within the boxing industry.

Nothing has been announced due to the difficulty Daniel Jacobs figures to give Alvarez on May 4 in Las Vegas. But DAZN’s John Skipper hasn’t signed Golovkin to a six-fight deal that’ll pay the former middleweight champion nearly $15 million for his DAZN debut without knowing Alvarez-Golovkin III would be next if Alvarez beats Jacobs three weeks from Saturday night.

Not so fast, according to Alvarez. The Mexican superstar said during a conference call Tuesday that he wants to fight Golovkin a third time only if the Kazakh knockout artist owns one of boxing’s recognized middleweight titles.

Alvarez won the WBA and WBC 160-pound championships from Golovkin when he defeated Golovkin by majority decision in their 12-round rematch September 15 at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas. Alvarez (51-1-2, 35 KOs) can add the IBF belt to his collection if he defeats Jacobs (35-2, 29 KOs) in their 12-round match May 4 at T-Mobile Arena.

“Look, first things first,” Alvarez said through a translator. “We have a tough, difficult fight ahead of us. But as a team, we have a goal. And the objective of this year is to win all the belts. If Golovkin has a belt, yes, why not? We’ve given the fans two beautiful fights, two great fights. Why not a third?”

Alvarez, 28, and Golovkin, 37, fought to a dubious draw in their first fight in September 2017. Their immediate rematch was postponed four months last year, once Alvarez tested positive for a performance-enhancing drug and was suspended for six months by the Nevada State Athletic Commission.

Alvarez seemed to suggest Tuesday that Golovkin (38-1-1, 34 KOs) should first fight WBO champion Demetrius Andrade to, in effect, earn a third bout between them.

Like Alvarez and Golovkin, Andrade (27-0, 17 KOs) is contractually committed to DAZN. The undefeated southpaw from Providence, Rhode Island, is expected to make the next defense of his title June 15 against an undetermined opponent.

“Look, the objective this year is to win all the titles,” Alvarez repeated later during the conference call Tuesday. “My goal this year is to have all the belts. If Golovkin has a belt before the end of the year, then yes, we’d gladly fight him. If he doesn’t, we’ll see how it falls later, how it plays out. But right now, my first objective, my first goal, is May 4th, to pick up that belt.”

Keith Idec is a senior writer/columnist for BoxingScene.com. He can be reached on Twitter @Idecboxing.