By Oscar Pick
SAUL ‘Canelo’ Alvarez looks to extend his scintillating story when he collides with destructive super-middleweight puncher Edgar Berlanga this Saturday.
The unified world champion will return to his fortress – the T-Mobile Arena, Las Vegas – as an overwhelming favourite, hoping to continue his dominance at 168 lbs.
However, should he wish to elevate his greatness, and possibly even become the greatest Mexican boxer of all time, then Canelo must simply secure more legacy-defining moments beyond his next outing.
With that being said, the pound-for-pound star will undoubtedly have plenty to celebrate when he does, eventually, hang up the gloves.
Canelo Alvarez’s story so far
Alvarez’s near 20-year career began in 2005, when the Mexican, merely a freckle-faced 15-year-old at the time, made his professional debut.
It was just under five years later, though, when he overcame his first gut check, stopping Jose Cotto – brother of Miguel – in the ninth round after recovering from a sharp left hook early doors.
Then, before facing a faded version of the once formidable Shane Mosley, Canelo claimed his first world title against Matthew Hatton, with the comprehensive victory initiating a ruthless surge that would later see him become known as the “Brit basher.”
But after making six defences of his WBC trinket, the super-welterweight was decisively outpointed by Floyd Mayweather in 2013, despite one judge, whose 114-114 scorecard remains one of the worst in recent memory, forgetting her Specsavers appointment that morning.
Regardless, Canelo was able to respond to his first setback with a remarkable degree of maturity, reinventing his style to become a more defensively responsible operator.
And these improvements ultimately led to him taking notable scalps over the likes of Erislandy Lara – albeit on the favourable side of a contentious decision – and Miguel Cotto who, like Mosley, was a far cry from his prime.
In truth, these performances, followed by a brutal display against a severely undersized Amir Khan, earned Alvarez a rather undesirable reputation, with a selection of fans branding him as a fighter who, instead of taking on all comers, prefers to flesh out his record against questionable opposition.
This was until he collided with Gennady Golovkin, of course. After securing world honours in 2010, and then spending the next six years pulverising anyone he stepped in the ring with, the fearsome Kazakh entered his eagerly awaited clash with Canelo as the bonafide king at 160 lbs.
Moreover, Golovkin’s destructive power, coupled with his opponent’s evasive manoeuvres, made for an even more compelling style matchup than most had anticipated.
Tom Hogan/Hogan Photos/Golden Boy
And yet the night was somewhat stained by a simply baffling scorecard of 118-110 in favour of Canelo, contributing to a highly controversial result that left many either hopelessly vexed or utterly stunned.
For both combatants, then, a rematch was the only option. And, once again, the showdown did not fail to deliver fireworks, with the pair providing another 12 rounds of enthralling action before Alvarez – this time with a more assertive performance – emerged victorious.
Soon after, a new chapter of the seasoned campaigner’s story was forged when he found a home for himself at super-middleweight.
While, following the Golovkin fights, Canelo had put on an imposing display against Daniel Jacobs, before dethroning an ageing and weight-drained Sergey Kovalev at 175 lbs, it could be said that phase two of his illustrious career only started to take shape when he employed a unique but effective tactic against Callum Smith, bludgeoning the Liverpudlian’s arm with his battering ram of a right hand.
It was then just under a year later when he amassed all the jewellery – dispatching Billy Joe Saunders and Caleb Plant with emphatic stoppages – to become the undisputed champion at 168 lbs.
Suffice to say, everything was going according to plan until he returned to light-heavyweight; only this time, it was to take on a highly skilled technician at the peak of his powers.
The size disparity was one thing, but against Dmitry Bivol, a master of range control, Canelo was also compelled to contend with his opponent’s elite-level footwork.
Dmitry Bivol attacks Saul “Canelo” Alvarez at the T-Mobile Arena on May 7, 2022 in Las Vegas, Nevada (Ethan Miller/Getty Images)
And so, in the wake of his second professional defeat, a move back down to super-middleweight – arguably his strongest division – was seemingly the most sensible option.
However, at this point, Alvarez found himself in an uphill battle to replicate his previous success. A somewhat underwhelming trilogy with Golovkin and a wide unanimous decision victory over John Ryder—extending his record against Brits to 8-0—preceded his showdown with Jermell Charlo, whose passive performance made for a frankly uninspiring affair.
And now, with the 34-year-old coming off another routine title defence against Jaime Munguia, one would suspect that the four-weight world champion’s best days in the sport are dwindling.