Saul "Canelo" Alvarez is considered as heavy favorite against Amir Khan in their upcoming showdown, but World Boxing Council president Mauricio Sulaiman thinks the Mexican boxing superstar cannot afford to relax.

While most analysts believe the Alvarez-Khan fight is a mismatch in favor of the reigning WBC middleweight champion, Sulaiman said that he is convinced Khan deserves a shot at Canelo's world title.

"Amir Khan is a very worthy defense," Sulaiman said, via BoxingScene. "Khan is former world champion, has extensive experience, has a high quality boxing and it will undoubtedly be a great fight."

Alvarez and Khan agreed to a catchweight of 155 pounds. Previous reports suggested that Canelo, who is naturally bigger than the Bolton native, will have a huge advantage on fight night. Canelo is comfortable fighting at 155, while Khan has not fought above 147 pounds before accepting the offer to face Alvarez.

While Canelo will have size advantage in the first defense of his WBC middleweight title, Sulaiman warned that Alvarez should not take Khan lightly because the British boxing superstar is known for his punching power. The WBC president added that Canelo should pressure Khan for the entire bout.

"I feel that Canelo will have to apply pressure, be smart," Sulaiman said. "Khan hits hard, the same as Canelo. I feel that Canelo must apply pressure and counter the strengths of his opponent."

Alvarez, who holds a 46-1-1 record with 32 knockout victories, won the WBC middleweight title via a unanimous decision victory against Miguel Cotto in November. Sulaiman said that the win against Cotto is the biggest in Canelo's career but he still has to prove his worth in his upcoming showdown against Khan.

Hall of Fame trainer Freddie Roach, who trained Cotto during the Puerto Rican boxer's fight against Alvarez, had the same take on the upcoming title showdown. The veteran boxing coach also said that fans should not count Khan out because the former world champion is capable of pulling off an upset because of his punching power.

"Don't count Khan out completely, because he is a good boxer," Roach told BoxingScene. "But he's going to have to box a perfect fight for twelve rounds that means he's going to have to really pay attention and stay away from this guy's power, and that's going to be really difficult for him to do."

Khan, who has 31 wins against just three defeats in his career, won the WBC silver welterweight title with a unanimous decision victory against Chris Algieri in May last year.

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