Oscar De La Hoya has launched a furious tirade against the IBF and announced he is considering legal action after the organisation stripped Saul 'Canelo' Alvarez of his 160-pound title.

Alvarez lost his IBF belt on Thursday after his promoters failed to agree a deal for a fight against mandatory challenger Sergiy Derevyanchenko.

However, Golden Boy Promotions CEO De La Hoya has reacted angrily to the news, insisting Derevyanchenko's camp "never had any intention" of securing a bout with Alvarez.

In a statement obtained by ESPN, De La Hoya said: "We are extremely disappointed at the IBF for forcing the world's best fighter to relinquish his world title.

"We have been in serious negotiations with Sergiy Derevyanchenko's promoter. We offered his team an unprecedented amount of money for a fighter of his limited stature and limited popularity, but the truth is that I'm now certain they never had any intention of making a deal. But instead they wanted to force us to relinquish Canelo's belt.

"This is an insult to boxing and more importantly an insult to the boxing fans of the world.

"This decision validates already existing concerns about the credibility of the IBF championship. Canelo inherited a mandatory challenger by defeating Daniel Jacobs, the man who beat Derevyanchenko, so to strip him of his title without giving him enough time to make the best fight possible is truly what is wrong with boxing, and I plan to aggressively consider all legal actions possible."

Derevyanchenko is now expected to face Alvarez's rival Gennady Golovkin for the newly vacant IBF belt.