Boxing's reputation took a bit of a battering last weekend with many observers unimpressed by Floyd Mayweather's win over Manny Pacquiao but there won't be too many critics of this performance from Canelo Alvarez.

Alvarez beat American, James Kirkland in Houston, Texas on Saturday night via a vicious third round knockout in a contest that saw the fighters stand toe to toe and throw punches all the way.

Kirkland made a good start to the fight and really took the fight to Canelo in the first minute of the opening round but the Mexican saw off the early onslaught and quickly found his range before catching Kirkland with a straight right that put the Texan down for the first time in the fight. Canelo piled on the pressure for the remainder of the round and with the ref poised to stop the bout there and then the bell sounded to ensure Kirkland would get beyond the first round at least.

Canelo started the second round as he had ended the first and was clearly looking for an early stoppage but Kirkland stood tall and weathered the storm to take the fight into the third round.

Kirkland made a decent start to the third round forcing Canelo back onto the ropes but he was unable to land anything clean on the Mexican before taking a heavy upper cut himself that saw him on the canvas for the second time in the fight. To his credit Kirkland got up but he may wish he hadn't bothered as seconds later Canelo caught him with a sickening right that put Kirkland flat on his back. The referee didn't even bother to count this time and waved the fight off straight away to give Alvarez the 32nd knockout of his career.

After the fight Canelo said he would take on any opponent. "I fight for the fans, and I'll fight anyone, anywhere, anytime," said the Mexican.

Many fans would like to see a rematch with Floyd Mayweather who he fought in September 2013. On that occasion Mayweather won by majority decision with two judges giving him the win and one saying it was a draw. Should that fight happen it would be interesting to see what weight the fight would be at. The heavier the better for Canelo but it is more likely that Mayweather would want the Mexican to come down in weight to fight him.

Another option for Alvarez would be a meeting with Miguel Cotto. Cotto is due to fight Daniel Geale in Brooklyn on June 6th and that would be a huge fight, particularly in Mexico and Puerto Rico where both fighters are from.

There are multiple options for Canelo and at just 24 years old the Mexican looks to be well placed to step up in the coming years to super fight status in place of the aging superstars Mayweather and Pacquiao.