Juan Manuel Marquez is planning to return to the ring on May 17, not against Timothy Bradley or Manny Pacquiao, but against Mike Alvarado.

Reports on Friday indicated that Alvarado has agreed "in principle" to face Marquez in a non-title bout at The Forum in Inglewood, Calif.

Top Rank CEO Bob Arum and Alvarado's manager Henry Delgado reportedly informed RingTV that Alvarado has already accepted an offer to fight the Mexican boxing icon, but the fight is not yet finalized until Marquez signs a contract.

Arum said that the fight is now in the hands of the 40-year-old Mexican, who recently said that he is planning to fight two more times before hanging up his gloves later this year,

Fernando Beltran of Zanfer Promotions confirmed to BoxingScene that they have received an offer to face the 33-year-old American brawler.

Beltran admitted that the Marquez-Alvarado showdown would be a great fight, but he reiterated that Marquez has the final say on whether or not to sign the fight contract.

"Mike Alvarado is a possible opponent for May 17 at the Forum in Inglewood. It would be a great fight, but that depends on Juan Manuel. He will decide if he wants that fight; I do not command him on his career. Juan has the date of May 17 available for his return," Beltran said.

Sources added that the likelihood of the match depends on both fighters' guaranteed fight purse. A Marquez vs. Alvarado bout won't be as big as a Marquez-Pacquiao or Marquez-Bradley showdown, creating speculation that the Mexican could turn down the bout because of financial reasons.

A showdown with Ruslan Provodnikov could be bigger in terms of potential pay-per-view buys and tickets sales, but Marquez has turned down a showdown with the Russian champion numerous times over the past several weeks.

Vadim Kornilov, the manager of the reigning WBO junior welterweight champion, told BoxingScene that Marquez looks afraid to face Provodnikov, knowing that the 30-year-old Russian will be a tough opponent.

Kornilov said that Marquez wants an easier fight, which is the reason why he is considering facing Alvarado, who is coming off a lopsided loss to Provodnikov in their title showdown in October last year.

"Unfortunately, this is not the same Marquez of the past and he doesn't want to take any risks. As a result, he is more willing to accept a fight with Alvarado, which he is more likely to win, rather than hold a pay-per-view bout against Ruslan, where he would certainly earn a lot more money," Kornilov lamented.