Undisputed super-middleweight champion Saul ‘Canelo’ Alvarez’ appears to have found his optimal weight at 168lbs. Yet, the pound-for-pound superstar revealed that there is one possibility that would see him move up to light-heavyweight once again.
Canelo knocked out Sergey Kovalev back in 2019 to claim the WBO light-heavyweight title but dropped back down to super-middleweight the following year, defeating Callum Smith, Avni Yildirim, Billy Joe Saunders and Caleb Plant all within twelve months to become the first ever four-belt undisputed super-middleweight champion.
That success saw Canelo opt to move back to light-heavyweight and dominate a new weight-class but he came up unstuck against Dmitry Bivol in a bid for the WBA crown, as the Russian handed him a second career defeat and his first in almost nine years.
As a result, Canelo has remained at super-middleweight since, where he has defeated Gennady Golovkin, John Ryder and Jermell Charlo all by unanimous-decision, in performances where fans felt the Mexican should have been able to get at least one stoppage win.
Now, Alvarez is attempting to prove that he is still the top dog in the division as he fights undefeated countryman Jaime Munguia next weekend but told One on One Boxing that he would be open to a return to 175lbs in the future, albeit only for the chance to avenge his loss to Bivol.
“Well, the only way that I would go up to 175lbs would be to have a rematch with Bivol. That would be the only way. I’m not obsessed with getting it [the rematch] but if it is there and we can come to an agreement in the negotiations, I’d love to have that rematch.”
Canelo-Munguia takes place on Saturday May 4th and can be watched live on DAZN PPV as Canelo faces his toughest test since defeat to Bivol, hoping to deny the viewers of what many predict to be a ‘passing of the torch’ affair.
Meanwhile, Dmitry Bivol takes on the toughest task of his career as he fights fellow light-heavyweight champion Artur Beterbiev on June 1st in a battle for the undisputed light-heavyweight title in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia – topping the well documented ‘Matchroom versus Queensberry, five versus five’ undercard.
A win for Bivol would see him become the first ever four-belt undisputed light-heavyweight title-holder and could possibly tee up the rematch.
Canelo would have the opportunity to become just the third multi-weight four-belt undisputed champion (after Terence Crawford and Naoya Inoue), although the winner David Benavidez’s showdown with Oleksandr Gvozdyk may instead get first dibs.
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