Tim Bradley has weighed in on the reported fight between Canelo Alvarez and Christian Mbilli. This will mark Alvarez’s first outing since his loss to Terence Crawford back in September.
The matchup between Alvarez and Mbilli has recently gained traction, with reports suggesting the fight could take place in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, later this year, in September, for Mbilli’s WBC super middleweight title.
Since its reports, anticipation around the bout has grown. However, many have questioned Alvarez’s choice of Mbilli as his comeback opponent, and boxers alike have already dismissed the super middleweight champion’s chances in the fight.
As discussions continue, Bradley offered a strong and unfiltered take on how he sees the fight playing out.
Bradley predicts dominant night for Alvarez against Mbilli
Speaking to FightHype about the potential matchup, Bradley gave a detailed breakdown of how he expects the fight to play out. He made it clear that while Mbilli brings toughness and pressure, he believes Alvarez will ultimately be too sharp, experienced, and will break the reigning champion.
“I heard, I saw that you know [Christian] Mbilli is going to be fighting. He’s [Alvarez] going to piece Mbilli up. You know, I like Mbilli, tough guy, comes to bring the pain. It’s going to be a hell of a fight. But Canelo Alvarez is going to catch and shoot on him all night long,” Bradley said.
Bradley pointed to Alvarez’s counterpunching ability as the key factor, suggesting it would be too much for Mbilli to handle.
“Uppercuts, hooks… it’s going to be bad,” he added. “Canelo is going to look like he’s back.”
Despite giving Mbilli credit for his toughness and aggressive style, Bradley believes that style could play directly into Alvarez’s strengths, and that the champion is not on the Mexican’s level.
Alvarez lost his undisputed super middleweight champion status to Crawford in their high-stakes fight on September 13 at Allegiant Stadium. Shortly after the loss, he underwent elbow surgery in his left hand that kept him away from the ring.
As for Mbilli, he was elevated from interim to full WBC super middleweight champion following Crawford’s retirement. He is unbeaten and holds 29 victories, out of which 24 came via knockouts.
Mbilli, though he is the champion, many are counting him out already. Bradley is not the only one.
Recently, the newly crowned WBA and WBO cruiserweight champion David Benavidez expressed the same, as he also feels that Mbilli is too easy an opponent for Alvarez.
“Nobody wants to see that sh*t,” Benavidez said. “You guys wanna see that? … Who the f**k is Mbilli?”
As anticipation around Alvarez’s next fight continues, opinions remain divided. Some see Mbilli as a credible challenger, while others have dismissed him completely.
