Saul “Canelo” Alvarez/photo by Tom Hogan – Hoganphotos/Golden Boy Promotions

A lot of smack has been talked by Cuba’s Erislandy Lara ahead of his July 12 junior middleweight title fight against Saul “Canelo” Alvarez of Mexico at MGM Grand in Las Vegas (on Showtime pay-per-view).

Oscar De La Hoya, who is promoting the fight under his Golden Boy Promotions banner, believes Alvarez has taken Lara’s mouthing off to heart.

“It’s going to be a great fight; I don’t want to predict anything,” De La Hoya said Tuesday. “Lara has been doing a lot of trash-talking that has been fueling ‘Canelo.’ I see him at an entirely different level and it’s exactly where he should be. He’s at a level of determination where he really wants to get this guy. It’s personal.”