Oscar de la Hoya wouldn't have been so keen on the fight between Gennady Golovkin and Canelo Alvarez if he didn't think the latter was a fully fledged middleweight.

Alvarez has an impressive record of 49 - 1, with 31 KOs, while Golovkin's is even more impressive, with the Kazakh still unbeaten with a record of 37 - 0 with 33 KOs.

While on paper, the fight looks evenly matched, Alvarez will need every advantage he can get over the Kazakh.

This week, on Stephen Smith's ESPN radio show, De La Hoya - Alvarez's promoter - expressed concerns that Alvarez will gain so much weight in between the weigh in and the fight it could affect his speed. 

"That’s his big advantage, is his speed, against Golovkin," he said, as per Boxing Scene.

"So, you know, I wouldn’t wanna see him to go up too many pounds right after the weigh-in on Friday before the fight. So we’ll see how they do it. He has a new strength and conditioning coach, so we’ll see how they adjust. But I think Canelo’s speed is a big factor.”

Around 29 hours will pass between the weigh in, which takes places at the MGM Grand Garden Arena and the start of the fight at the T Mobile Arena in Las Vegas.

For Golovkin's fight against Daniel Jacobs in March, Jacobs gained at least 15 pounds in between the fight and the weigh in, though this interlude was 9 hours longer, so there is a precedent for this.

Alvarez fans will hope his new fitness coach can ensure he enters the ring in perfect physical condition, and De La Hoya's concerns about speed are unfounded.