Kamaru Usman has been told he would not be "carried" by Canelo Alvarez in the way Floyd Mayweather was accused of doing when fighting Conor McGregor.
The UFC star has continued to call out boxing's leading fighter to a crossover bout which he would like to take place after his title defence against Leon Edwards. Mayweather fought McGregor in a historic boxing clash in 2017 which began the trend, with the boxing legend later facing claims from fans that he prolonged the fight.
UFC heavyweight Daniel Cormier has advised Usman to avoid the clash with Alvarez at all costs and try to earn the financial rewards at stake without stepping in the ring. "I mean, that's my brother. I love [Kamaru Usman] to death and I would love for him to get the bag," Cormier told ESPN MMA on his show with Ryan Clark. "But the reality is this: you cannot fight Canelo Alvarez and let me tell you one reason.
"The main reason you can't fight Canelo; Canelo is a Mexican fighter with a ton of pride. He ain't gonna carry him like many people believe Floyd Mayweather did for Conor McGregor. Canelo will try to hurt you. So no I am tapping out because I care about the wellbeing of my brother.
"Look at him (Alvarez) the dude puts everything into his punches and demolishes professional boxers, so yeah I am tapping out I don't want to see it. Let's see if we can just negotiate an encounter where you can get the money from fighting Canelo without actually having to fight Canelo."
Mayweather defeated McGregor with a 10th-round stoppage in a clash that was described as the biggest in combat sports history with revenue generated in excess of £450million. The American dominated the fight despite the UFC star's bright early start and eventually cruised to victory late on.
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Despite previously dismissing the challenge as a payday grab, Alvarez has since refused to rule out the clash against Usman, but insists he must first focus on his boxing legacy. His current promoter Eddie Hearn also gave the green light for future discussions to take place as he holds a good relationship with UFC president Dana White.
Edwards, meanwhile, insisted the star will not beat Alvarez and is uncertain of the motivation behind the frequent call-outs. "I don't know where he's at," he said. "There's no way he's going to beat Canelo anyway and there's no way he's beating me.
"I saw something came out the day where he said he's coming out to wrestle for the whole fight, he can do what he wants. I'm ready to go. It's either the payday or he's trying to test himself, one or the other. It's not a long career, so if you can get paid get paid."
