The accolade of ‘face of boxing’ is a phrase that has been well-disputed throughout 2023, with Saul ‘Canelo’ Alvarez’s recent underwhelming performances leading both Gervonta ‘Tank’ Davis and Terence Crawford to believe that they have become the new poster boy of the sport.
Canelo suffered his first defeat in almost nine years last May, losing out to Dmitry Bivol by unanimous decision in a challenge for the light-heavyweight world title. The Mexican then returned to the super-middleweight division to face his ageing rival, Gennadiy Golovkin, to complete their trilogy and although Alvarez got the win, the performance was deemed as below-par.
After a brief stint away from the ring, Canelo made his first appearance of 2023, taking on his mandatory challenger, John Ryder, in the second defence of his undisputed crown. Again, Canelo was victorious via unanimous-decision, but the failure to get the stoppage against Ryder raised more questions, with some fans believing the 33-year-old’s best days are behind him.
Meanwhile, both Tank and Crawford put on career-best displays in the two standout wins of the year, with one-sided knockout wins over fellow pay-per-view stars, Ryan Garcia and Errol Spence Jr.
Now, Alvarez has the chance to prove his doubters wrong, as he faces undisputed super-welterweight champion, Jermell Charlo, in a clash billed as ‘undisputed versus undisputed’ in a defence of his four 168lb belts.
Speaking to Showtime ahead of the fight he said he can’t wait to prove he is still the best fighter on the planet.
“I can’t wait for September 30th. This fight, you’ll see I’m the king of boxing.”
Canelo faces Charlo on September 30 in Las Vegas, and will be broadcast live on Showtime PPV in America with no UK TV partner yet announced.
