Boxing trainer Freddie Roach and welterweight pugilist Matthew Hatton believe Saul "Canelo" Alvarez will overpower Amir Khan during their middleweight title bout on May 7 at the new T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas. On the other hand, Oscar De La Hoya thinks the British underdog is more than capable of an upset.

Roach recently told Boxing News that Khan, his former trainee, has the athletic advantage over Alvarez, but his weight will be a problem. He said the fight will be a physical chess match between Khan's footwork and Canelo's size. The 2013 Boxing Hall of Fame inductee doubts if Khan will be able to maintain his speed throughout the fight.

"It'll be difficult for 36 minutes because Khan still has the tendency to stay in the pocket too long," Roach explained. "He stopped a lot of fighters in the amateurs and so that's why I think he stays in the pocket so long, at times."

He added that the 29-year old Bolton native knows how to move away from the pocket easily while also launching a few combinations of his own. Roach concluded by saying Khan needs to be nearly perfect in his execution in order to offset Canelo's strength for 12 grueling rounds.

Meanwhile, retired British boxer Matthew Hatton, who lost to Canelo in 2011, said Khan is at a serious weight disadvantage as Canelo has a knack for quickly gaining weight after official weigh-ins, ESPN reported.

Khan has yet to fight an opponent beyond his welterweight limit of 147 pounds, while Canelo is a natural 160-pound middleweight. The Cinco de Mayo weekend bout will be fought at a 155-pound catch weight, and Hatton thinks Canelo will weigh more than that during fight night.

The 34-year old Stockport native revealed that he also had to put on a few pounds to meet the much bigger Canelo at a reasonable catch weight. Hatton believes Khan can pose serious problems for Canelo, but ultimately, the Mexican champion's strength and power will be too much for the British challenger.

Golden Boy Promotions boss Oscar De La Hoya thinks weight won't be much of a problem for a quick-footed boxer like Khan. When asked to comment on the upcoming fight, The Golden Boy said it reminds him of his 2008 showdown with Philippine icon Manny Pacquiao, per ESPN Deportes with translation from Boxing News.

"The first thing that comes to mind is when I fought Pacquiao. Everyone said that it was going to be easy fight for me. Pacquiao was very small, and obviously we know what happened - he won easy," recalled De La Hoya.

Many have criticized the upcoming fight for its unusual 155-pound catch weight, but WBC president Mauricio Sulaiman said that the weight agreement between both boxers does not infringe any boxing rules, per World Boxing News.