Maybe Canelo Alvarez has got a future in politics.
Because within moments of vanquishing 35-year-old Miguel Cotto with a unanimous decision that yielded the WBC middleweight title, the cinnamon-haired Mexican was saying precisely the things that everyone charmed by his aura wanted to hear.
First, he did the requisite thanking of the people who have helped get him where he is.
"It's a great victory for me, and not just for me but for all of my country, Alvarez said. For all of my people, my family and especially for my team. I've got a great trainer and he's the one who brought me here from nothing. I didn't know what a jab was and now we've gotten to this level."
Indeed, it's been a far headier ride than most Guadalajara-based 25-year-olds have experienced.
He began punching for money as a precocious 139-pounder, just five months after his 15th birthday, and collected his first regional title belt at welterweight a few months before turning 18.
World title No. 1 -- at 154 pounds -- came in fight No. 37 at age 20, he drew more than 39,000 fans to a live show in San Antonio two years later and subsequently rode shotgun to Floyd Mayweather Jr. on what was the most lucrative pay-per-view show in history prior to last spring.
The 10-city press tour lead-up to that fight -- which featured crowds favoring Alvarez in every locale by Mayweather's hometown of Grand Rapids, Mich. -- illustrated the appeal the kid had already assembled.
A former executive at Oscar De La Hoya's promotional company tagged him, "the Mexican James Dean."
And to the Golden Boy himself, it's a label that still sticks.
"Sure, he reminds me of myself a little bit, except for the red hair," De La Hoya told CBS Sports.
"He's got everything you need to be a superstar. He's young. He's handsome. And the best thing about it from our perspective right now, it's not just about that. He's a real fighter, too."
Alvarez proved his boss' latter sentiment over 12 spirited rounds with Cotto, biding his time while the smaller, fleeter man used movement early on, then gradually slowing him down while punctuating each exchange with more precise and weightier blows.
And though neither man ever appeared close to going down, Cotto was noticeably impacted by body work in the latter stages, as Alvarez closed the deal in a way that belied talk he was in danger of a stretch-run fadeout.
The late mettle cemented scorecard margins of 11-1, 10-2 and 9-3 from the judges -- CBS Sports had it 8-4 -- and convincingly positioned Alvarez for his next spin as a masses-pleasing politician.
This time, he captivated the audience frothing at the mouth for a 160-pound mega-fight.
"If you want me to fight him right now, put the gloves on and I'll fight him right now," Alvarez said. "I respect he's a great champion, but right now I'll put the gloves on against him."
The "him" being referred to is Kazakhstan menace Gennady Golovkin, who holds three other title belts in the division and has been searching high and low for a high-end foe willing to take him on.
A suggestion that he'd dip to 154 pounds for a Mayweather fight went unanswered up to "Money's" recent retirement, and the fantasy of a showdown with 168-pound kingpin Andre Ward evaporated when Ward recently announced a permanent move to light heavyweights.
Cotto broke into stuttering whenever the idea was mentioned to him, which left the otherwise unaffiliated world clamoring for an Alvarez showdown as the last fleeting chance of a bout.
So whether he's got any intention of fighting him or not, he knew precisely what to say and when.
And until they're in a ring staring across at each other, that'll have to be enough.
"That's why people love him, because he's willing to fight the very best. And Golovkin is no exception," De La Hoya said. "He's eventually going to fight Golovkin, and the question is at what point do we let him loose? The time will come. And at the right time, people will see that fight."
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Welcome to our coverage of Miguel Cotto vs. Canelo Alvarez from the Mandalay Bay center in Las Vegas. Cotto comes into the bout the 'linear champion after having his WBC middleweight belt stripped for not paying sanctioning fees of $300,000. Alvarez comes in as the favorite in this bout and can walk away the champion with the belt if he is victorious.
We will have you covered with everything and anything surrounding Saturday night's main event.
Fight Card
Vacant WBC Middleweight title: Canelo Alvarez (46-1-1, 32 KOs) def. Miguel Cotto (40-5, 33 KOs) by unanimous decision.
WBC Junior Lightweight title: Francisco Vargas (23-0-1, 17 KOs) def. Takashi Miura (29-3-2, 22 KOs) by TKO
Junior Featherweights: Guillermo Rigondeaux (16-0, 10 KOs) def. Drian Francisco (28-4-1, 22 KOs) by unanimous decision.
Featherweights: Ronny Rios (25-1, 10 KOs) def. Jayson Velez (23-1-1, 16 KOs) by unanimous decision.
