_2020_08_23_083716.jpg)
Eleider Alvarez has gone back to the drawing board once again.
The former light heavyweight titleholder from Colombia is reportedly now working with well-known Canadian boxing trainer Stéphan Larouche, according to Jeff Jeffrey of TVA Sports, a French-language news station based in Montreal.
Alvarez, who lives and trains in Montreal, was previously under the short-lived tutelage of Miami-based Pedro Diaz – best known for his partnership with Cuban bantamweight Guillermo Rigondeaux – but there was “no chemistry” in that relationship, according to Jeffrey. Alvarez linked up with Diaz last May.
Before Diaz, Alvarez was trained by Marc Ramsay, a well-known trainer of world class fighters in the Montreal area. With Ramsay, Alvarez went from contender to champion, when he upset Sergey Kovalev with a seventh round stoppage during their light heavyweight title bout in 2018 in Atlantic City. Alvarez wound up losing the title to Kovalev by 12-round decision in the rematch six months later.
Alvarez (25-2, 13 KOs) decided to part ways with Ramsay after his last bout in the ring, a brutal ninth-round knockout loss at the hands of Joe Smith Jr. at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas in August of 2020.
The loss prompted Ramsay to tell his charge to consider retirement. Ramsay was also displeased with Alvarez’s conditioning.
There were two things that bothered me more,” Ramsay said at the time. “The first is his weight between fights. I wanted him to stay around 200 pounds. The last time we met he was 225 pounds. Then I wanted him to prepare a post-career project. He still hasn’t planned anything yet.”
In Larouche, Alvarez will no doubt find himself in experienced hands. Over the years, Larouche, a familiar face on the Montreal boxing scene, has trained the likes of Lucian Bute and Jean Pascal.
Alvarez has not fought since the loss to Smith. He is still promoted by Montreal-based Yvon Michel.
According to TVA Sports, Alvarez is aiming for a comeback fight in November.