Talks for a spring fight between middleweight champion Canelo Alvarez and secondary titlist Ryota Murata in Murata's home country of Japan have ended, sources with knowledge of the discussions told ESPN. One source termed the talks as having "cratered." The exact reason was not disclosed but the fight, viewed by many as a long shot to be made in the first place, could be revived for the fall, one source said. Alvarez, who has said he's interested in fighting overseas, still plans to fight in the spring, most likely May 2 in Las Vegas with undefeated super middleweight world titleholders Callum Smith and Billy Joe Saunders among those in the running for the fight. Alvarez also holds a secondary belt at super middleweight.
