Hot on the heels of Amir Khan saying that he's gotten some kind of verbal commitment to fight Floyd Mayweather sometime next year, I'm comfortable enough to say that Mayweather's 2012 probably will have him facing off against Khan, but also possibly none other than Saul "Canelo" Alvarez. Though it's way too soon to start putting your pennies together to buy tickets for Mayweather-Khan, it's safe to say that both Khan and Alvarez present Mayweather with the best available paydays he can make at this time.
Not to be outdone, Manny Pacquiao will more than likely face off against Timothy Bradley this May, but if he struggles against Juan Manuel Marquez in his planned demolition of his old rival this November, I wouldn't put it past Bob Arum to fast track Lightweight champion Brandon Rios to a Pacquiao fight. If not Rios, Pacquiao might make another trip up the scales to challenge whatever is left of Miguel Cotto should he get past Antonio Margarito, which I highly doubt. Hard to believe, but Mayweather-Pacquiao is looking more and more likely as a fantasy match-up than something we'll ever see.
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Speaking of "Canelo," the WBC Super Welterweight champion will be making his return to the ring November 26th in Mexico, headlining a triple-header against Kermit "The Frog/The Crybaby/Superman/Waa Waa Waa" Cintron. The card will also feature Adrian Broner and Gary Russell, but their opponents have yet to be announced. Kudos to HBO for a decent card on a holiday weekend.
Paul Williams is emerging from hiding after robbing Erislandy Lara blind last July. Williams's promoter Dan Goossen said that the former Welterweight champion will be back in 2012 and will be fighting a right-handed fighter because Williams cannot handle another ass-kicking from a southpaw. Williams is a done fighter to me, but I can't help but say that a sick side of me wants to see him fight the returning Jermain Taylor sometime next year.
Apparently Humberto Soto is going to face off against WBA champion-but-not Marcos Maidana December 10th, but that's news to Maidana. Soto signed with Golden Boy Promotions not too long ago, and while stablemate Maidana may be blind-sided by the news, I can't think of a better lead-in bout for the Amir Khan-Lamont Peterson card, which will be HBO's final card of the year.
Danny Howard can be reached via e-mail (dhoward@fighthype.com) Twitter (@DBHoward126) and on Facebook.