Canelo just beat Smith, the Ring magazine SMW champion in a lopsided victory. He has now won titles from 154 all the way up to 175, he should be lauded as one of the true greats with years of his prime left in him and yet the sounds of discontent are growing louder. Without jumping on either side of the fence, let us see why?
- Canelo won his first world title against Matthew Hatton, a career light welterweight (140 lb)....the title was the WBC light middleweight crown (154 lb). The image of the golden boy was already painted. This did not help with non Mexican fans.
- Canelo's initial defences included Ryan Rhodes, Alfonso Gomez and Kermit Cintron. Stoppage wins in all but no serious competition.
- Canelo's first truly high profile fight was against the badly ageing Mosley. He failed to stop the shot fighter.
- Canelo's first unification and most important fight till that point was against Trout. This is a no excuse, out and out terrific opponent. Canelo won by wide margins with one scorecard having it 118-109. Scorecards were announced throughout the fight and it was obvious that Canelo was winning rounds regardless of the in ring action. Trout looked dejected. The non Mexican fan outcry was starting to grow.
- Canelo was now in the biggest PPV event of his career against Floyd Mayweather. The fight was held at a catchweight of 152lb, it was obvious Canelo looked drained, weak and not the same fighter he had been in previous bouts. Mayweather won easily.
- Now a career midpoint, where Canelo is one of the biggest PPV names in the sport and can dictate fight contracts. In doing so he dictates weights, fighting leading light middleweight Erislandy Lara in the middleweight division (155 lb). The fight is a controversial decision, for some, even more so than the Trout win.
- GGG...this should have been Canelo's crowning glory, or rather, that's how it was being billed yet GGG should have won the fight. Even the pro Mexican Canelo fans start to boo the decision. Rematch, Canelo is a lot better but GGG once again seems to win down the stretch, or at the least get a draw, Canelo wins again.
- The latest chapter in the Canelo story is one of uneven contracts, bad opponents and dictating everything from weights to rehydration clauses. No fighter, not even Mayweather, has had so much control. Kovalev was beaten while adhering to strict rehydration clauses and a broken right hand. The latest win, against Callum Smith seemed to come against an opponent unwilling or unable to fight...maybe just having enough time to train for weight.
What does the next chapter hold? And can Canelo remove the asterixis throughout his career?
hes a cheater and cherry picker who makes up his own weights when it suits him and hops around in weight when he doesnt feel like fighting certain guys
Alvarez is an excellent fighter. I wish his wins in big fights were clearer without controversy
No one doubts his skillset but like you say, almost all his "wins" have some sort of question mark next to them. The judges t his team have done him no favours.
Funny you mention that....old Floyd fans seem to all flock to Canelo now, even further parallels between the two.
It does seem he really only fights when its opportune for him which is a shame(top dog based on resume only)
hahaha the ex maynerds are terrible and a disease on this forum
I just have a problem calling someone the top dog, while there is a guy that is in your best division, who has beat you twice, or at worst gone 1-1 with you asking for a 3rd fight.
I give Canelo huge props for taking the Lara fight. Canelo use to fight everyone. He took fights that were bad matchups for him stylistically, he took the hard fights, he didn't look for the easy way.
Can't really say that about him anymore.
Hes just turned into a frustrating fighter like Floyd was, where you know he could be taking more fan friendly fights, or meaningful fights, but hes just avoiding the fights everyone wants to see, until they guys look bad.
Funny you mention that....old Floyd fans seem to all flock to Canelo now, even further parallels between the two.
It does seem he really only fights when its opportune for him which is a shame(top dog based on resume only)
He was hyped as great and gifted belts long before he was. Beating the likes of matthew hatton and jose cotto all while hearing about how amazing he was and when he started to step up he was always given generous scoring. To his credit he has gotten better with every fight and now is a genuinely great fighter, but he carries so much stigma from the past.
It's the same way I see it. Sad but true and it's not like he isn't one of the best or that he hasn't superb boxing skills, it's that he has opted to play it safe a favor the business part of the sport mostly each and every time...the lowest risk for the highest reward.
canelo will just continue the formula of fighting mediocre competition until one of the real big threats show enough weakness for him to capitalize on.
canelo wanted nothing to do with ggg when he was steamrolling opponents until he looked human against jacobs.
canelo wanted nothing to do with callum until he lost badly to ryder.
canelo didn't fight jacobs until he struggled badly against derevyanchenko.
canelo doesn't want nothing to do with beterbiev until he gets old and/or looks very vulnerable in his next fight. guaranteed.
in the meantime expect fielding chavez jr level competition.
classic cherry picker.
He gets full credit from me. The only issue was the testing meat thing. Apart from that he is the top guy in boxing and he gets what he deserves (The love and the hate) which is what the number 1 guys always gets. It happened with Mayweather, it happened with Pacman, Loma, Crawford and now Canelo. It’s not a big deal, you just have to put it aside and do you.
LA TIMES: Canelo Alvarez had a chance to elevate his ambitions, and it's gone
Championship boxing match, glorified sparring session, whatever that was, it resembled the afternoon feeding of the red-bellied piranhas at the Los Angeles Zoo.
Canelo Alvarez walked down and whacked around a defenseless man for 12 rounds on Saturday night, each thudding blow he landed destroying the delusions of Callum Smith that were manufactured by a British sports scene that overrates its soccer players and really, really overrates its fighters.
Rather than elevate Alvarez, the lopsided decision victory confirmed what was already obvious before the opening bell sounded:
Alvarez blew it.
He once had a worthy adversary in Gennady Golovkin. They had two close fights that could have been scored either way. But instead of stepping into the ring with Golovkin for a third time, Alvarez argued the favorable jury verdict of the second fight served as the final word.
No athletes are judged more by singular moments than boxers. They are defined by how they confront their greatest obstacles and respond to their most intense crises.
Perhaps Alvarez didn’t realize it at the time, but his rivalry against Golovkin hung on that moment.
When Alvarez elected to move on and take on the likes of Daniel Jacobs and Sergey Kovalev, the moment vanished. Now, there’s nothing he can do to recapture it, not even fighting Golovkin again.
Alvarez has the enthusiastic backing of the boxing industrial complex, which has taken to overstating his abilities in an effort to prop up its dead sport. But history will view him more objectively. Time has a sobering effect on perception.
As it was, whatever he did against Golovkin was always destined to be diminished. Alvarez waited until Golovkin was 35 to agree to their first fight, which ended in a draw. The initially scheduled rematch was called off because Alvarez tested positive for a performance-enhancing drug.
As the sport’s No. 1 attraction, Alvarez was convinced Golovkin needed him more than he needed Golovkin. From a financial perspective, that was true. But in terms of his legacy, Alvarez also needed Golovkin.
The 30-year-old Mexican now finds himself without the potential adversary who could help him realize his ambitions.
He talks about wanting to make history but has no way to make it. He promises to make fights the public wants to see, but the average sports fan has never heard of any of his prospective opponents other than Golovkin.
Golovkin, who beat someone named Kamil Szeremeta on Friday night, is technically available. The operative word in that sentence is "technically." Golovkin is now 38, and he looked 38 against Szeremeta, which is probably why Alvarez is suddenly open to fighting him.
Alvarez and Golovkin could still pack an arena, but, in this case too, history will eventually see the spectacle for what it is: a fighter in his prime beating up on an old man.
Alvarez’s other options will produce more mismatches like the one in which he battered Smith, who on paper looked like a reasonable opponent.
Smith was the 168-pound champion of one of boxing’s credibility-challenged sanctioning bodies. Alvarez defeated Kovalev at 175 pounds but was known as a 160-pounder. Smith stands 6-foot-3, which is tall even for a super middleweight.
Of course, anyone with a rudimentary understanding of boxing who watched tape of Smith could tell he stood no chance. He threw straight punches and had a sneaky right hand but was slow and robotic.
Alvarez, although seven inches shorter than Smith, immediately started out-jabbing him. Alvarez worked at a measured pace but nonetheless battered Smith around the ring.
This was an unmitigated disaster.
DAZN, the streaming service that broadcast the fight, had promoted this as a serious challenge for Alvarez. If Smith was one of the better options available, that doesn’t speak well of the sport’s talent pool. As much as the network’s propagandist announcers tried to portray the blowout as a byproduct of Alvarez’s brilliance, the knowledgeable fans who watched this debacle will be less enthusiastic the next time Alvarez takes on another relatively unknown fighter, assuming they watch at all.
It would have been one thing if Alvarez had already defeated Golovkin convincingly in a third fight and secured his place as the unquestionable top fighter of his generation. These fights could have been sold as a legend’s ride into the sunset.
But he didn’t have that fight with Golovkin, which make these fights … what, exactly?
“The best of my career is coming,” Alvarez said in Spanish on the broadcast’s post-fight interview.
At least he’s aware his legacy still has to be established.
As many name fighters as Alvarez has on his resume, his record doesn’t look as formidable when examined closely.
His first major fight was against Shane Mosley, who was too small and too old. Miguel Cotto was too small. Amir Khan was too small and never as good as advertised. Julio Cesar Chavez Jr. had his father’s name but nothing else. Kovalev was finished.
Alvarez has taken a number of legitimate gambles and deserves credit for that. But he was fortunate to be awarded victories over Austin Trout and Erislandy Lara, against whom he didn’t show well. He looked like an amateur against Floyd Mayweather. Golovkin fought him evenly. About the only high-risk fight he won convincingly was a tactical match against Jacobs.
Terence Crawford and Errol Spence should take notice. Crawford and Spence are the two best welterweights in the world. They might be the two best fighters in the world, period, regardless of weight class. They have spent a majority of the last two years circling around each other.
The potential showdown between them nearly disappeared last year when Spence was involved in a major car accident. The possibility re-emerged earlier this month when Spence dominated former champion Danny Garcia in his return bout. But Spence and Crawford don’t appear any closer to meeting in the ring. They don’t think the immediate financial rewards justify the risks.
They could be right. There could very well come a time in a couple of years when fighting each other would be more lucrative. By then, however, who knows how old Crawford will be? He is already 33.
By waiting, Spence and Crawford are taking a different kind of risk, the same one Alvarez took when he walked away from a third fight with Golovkin. They could be remembered not for the fights they took, but the fight they didn’t take.
canelo will just continue the formula of fighting mediocre competition until one of the real big threats show enough weakness for him to capitalize on.
canelo wanted nothing to do with ggg when he was steamrolling opponents until he looked human against jacobs.
canelo wanted nothing to do with callum until he lost badly to ryder.
canelo didn't fight jacobs until he struggled badly against derevyanchenko.
canelo doesn't want nothing to do with beterbiev until he gets old and/or looks very vulnerable in his next fight. guaranteed.
in the meantime expect fielding chavez jr level competition.
classic cherry picker.
I guess he did learn a lot about Mayweather.
To isolate a fighter then denigrate what he is done is easy, how about put his resume and path against other resumes and paths that they took, at least then you have reference, as it stands all I see is haters spinning their version of whats good or bad as they feel fit, when you do head to head then things look much clearer.
Every fighter has opponents they could have fought, but as you cannot fight everyone there will always be haters touting the guys you didnt fight, its lose lose situation for the fighter unless you compare 1 resume against others then you see its merit.
As a boxing junkie, I just want to be entertained and Canelo doesnt to it for me. There are asterisks next to some of his wins but more importantly, he doesn’t always close the show. He has something missing that separates him from the Mexican greats of the past.
Every great fighter has that signature victory and I cant think of one for Canelo. That weak ass rematch victory over GG aint gonna cut it. That sht dont catapult anybody into greatness level.
This is probably my issue with Canelo too. Too many issues next to his best wins...and even when he does win, minus the dodgy scorecards there is just that lack of electricity...Barrera, Morales, Chavez all come to mind. Canelo just has that something missing.
A real boss would look at Beterbiev's performance against Gvozdyk (the guy who just put Adonis Stevenson in the hospital) and say that's the scariest man on the planet, that's who I wanna fight. We all know Canelo aint about that life...
I mean matching a 5'7'' ish guy against Beterbiev, a career light heavyweight who is at op lever puncher is a bit unfair. However, Canelo can easily remove the bad taste in fan's mouths by simply giving his opponents time to prep or not fight when they have broken hands. It really would be as simple as that.
A real boss would look at Beterbiev's performance against Gvozdyk (the guy who just put Adonis Stevenson in the hospital) and say that's the scariest man on the planet, that's who I wanna fight. We all know Canelo aint about that life...
Canelo gets no respect cuz he carefully picks his opponents. GGG, looks vulnerable after arguably losing to Jacobs. Fights him then. "Targets" Kovalev cuz he has some bad outings, is an alcoholic, doesn't listen to his coach, and becomes obvious he doesn't like getting hit to the body. Almost gets KOd by Yarde. Fights Smith after he looks terrible and loses to Rider. That's not the stuff of an all time great. Canelo doesn't run towards the smoke. Bud does. Back when Bud was at 140 becoming undisputed, Spence was the boogeyman at 147 that NOBODY wanted to fight. Instead of running away, Bud said that's the guy I want, bring him on. Canelo don't do none of that which is why I can't respect him.
As a boxing junkie, I just want to be entertained and Canelo doesnt to it for me. There are asterisks next to some of his wins but more importantly, he doesn’t always close the show. He has something missing that separates him from the Mexican greats of the past.
Every great fighter has that signature victory and I cant think of one for Canelo. That weak ass rematch victory over GG aint gonna cut it. That sht dont catapult anybody into greatness level.
Boxing fans are so weird and goofy
I like Canelo and GGG
I like Floyd and Pac
Why is it you can't be a fan of two fighters who have a rivalry ?
Boxing twitter is great for the lols though
As much as I can't stand Canelo and always root against him(he is great at match making), you have to give him his props
1) Fought Erislandy Lara whom stylistically was a bad matchup for him and narrowly won - No one has taken any credit away from Canelo, point is he arguably lost that fight but the win, along with lopsided cards against Trout and even that 1 card against Floyd fuels the arguments judges are paid off by him or his team
2) Fought evenly with GGG who was slightly past his prime but still a good showing - Good showing yes, but arguably lost or went 1-1 and yet has done his best to not get a 3rd fight, which shoud have happened about 2 years ago
3) Defeated Danny Jacobs who was still in his prime - Sure but Jacobs is an ok fighter at best
4) KO'd Kovalev who while was past it, was probably the 3rd best LHW at the time - This one can not be a positive, Kovalev wasnt even fit to compete
5) Defeated the man at 168 despite Ryder showing the Blueprint - Fairplay but Canelo doesnt make it without an asterix on fight announcement, timing etc
My responses above
Canelo has had many things happening to his career. Not everything is good.
1. Getting gift decision against GGG 1.
2. Creating his own 155 division.
3. Vacating a Mw belt to avoid a 34 years old GGG.
I've listed many of these facts here https://www.boxingscene.com/forums/showthread.php?t=838077
Yeah, it was a problem when Canelo was presented as a light middle champ but did not defend in the light middle division.
ggg beat canelo twice. that's real facts. and it wasn't until ggg looked human against jacobs that canelo finally decided to fight him after avoiding him for years hahahahaha shows how much of a cherry picking coward your hero is.
Quite true.
lmao GGG stans all rustled when Canelo just dominated the ring 168 pound champion.
GGG 154-168 tho. Whoops who was it that won ring at all 3 of those divisions? GGG's daddy Canelo.
GGG fans have to jump on google whenever GGG announces an opponent.
GGG fans cant even remember that polish sausage factory shift supervisor's name without googling it.
I didn't even watch the GGG fight and until he fights legit fighters again I won't. This has nothing to do with him.
In fact, if you review my posts you'll find I gave Canelo credit but someone posed a question, why are there so many unwilling to do so. I posted some reasons for the arguments that would be presented.
5y ago
Canelo: Why he doesn't get credit | BoxingScene Community