Edgar Berlanga has stood at the sport’s mountaintop, relishing the ring walk before a filled arena and tasting the challenge of lasting 12 rounds against the most popular fighter of the generation, Canelo Alvarez.
Creating a fitting encore to that is a daunting task.
“That experience was amazing,” Berlanga said Friday on ProBox TV’s “Top Stories,” where he joined ProBox TV founder and BoxingScene owner Garry Jonas on an episode.
“If I could go out and relive that moment, I’d do it over and over. I made it to the pinnacle of boxing and showed what kind of fighter I am. I went out and performed when everyone was talking all this stuff. The sky’s the limit for me now.”
Berlanga manager Keith Connolly told BoxingScene Wednesday that he’s aiming to bring Berlanga home to Puerto Rico for a March main event that is currently in discussions.
At 27, Brooklyn’s Berlanga 22-1 (17 KOs) started his career with 16 consecutive knockouts. Full of swagger, he found himself in deep with three-belt super-middleweight champion Alvarez, as the Mexican four-division champion knocked down Berlanga in the third round and cruised to a unanimous-decision victory.
A substantial underdog in that bout, Berlanga claimed a moral victory by going the distance and embracing words of encouragement from Alvarez that Berlanga “told me you’ll be a problem in this sport,” at the conclusion of their bout.
“He knows,” Berlanga said.
Now, the contender moves on to his Puerto Rico card, headlining a DAZN card against an opponent who has yet to be finalized and will likely not be a top-shelf contender in the division.
Those tests will await later in 2025, with substantial foes like former IBF champion and WBA interim champion Caleb Plant, former middleweight champion Jermall Charlo and the other 2024 Alvarez challenger, Jaime Munguia, in wait.