Canelo Alvarez’s Boxing Future in Jeopardy Despite WBC’s Backing, Ex-World Champ Fears

A quick glance at boxing rankings, and the landscape depicts a different picture than it did a week ago. In the super middleweight division, the champion’s row has only one name: Terence Crawford. The WBA and WBC’s format lists Jose Armando Resendiz and Christian M’billi as interim title holders. What stands out is the number one name in the contender’s list. Right after M’billi, WBC’s first-ranked contender is Canelo Alvarez. Until a week ago his name was embossed at the top.

The loss to Terence Crawford at Allegiant Stadium may have put a brake on Canelo’s career. Since defeating Rocky Fielding back in 2018, he has ruled the division. He still has two fights left under the Riyadh Season deal, and remains a big name in the division and in boxing in general. But there is no denying it: A narrative that a prime Canelo Alvarez may be a thing of the past now seems to linger. One only needs to review former champion Paulie Malignaggi‘s pointed observations to gauge the undercurrents.

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Has time finally run out on Canelo Alvarez?

Boxing Scene‘s podcast had barely started when the host asked Malignaggi, “What is, to you, the biggest movement at 168? Is it Canelo being number one, ranked number one by WBC? Is it the M’billi rematch with Lester Martinez? What do you think will happen? Is Crawford staying at 68? What’s the X factor to you?” The former junior welterweight champion responded, “I like the Martinez rematch because it pushes more for the future, and it keeps pushing continuity.”

He explained. Crawford had a great victory, but he is getting old. It remains uncertain how long he will stay at 168 pounds. “Canelo, you know, he’s a big name, so he’s going to be in the conversation all the time. But again, there’s not much continuity there because how much longer is he really going to be around, you know?” Paulie Malignaggi asked.

That is where Christian M’billi and Lester Martinez’s rematch comes into play. The outcome provides the division with a way forward. The host pressed. Canelo still remains one of boxing’s biggest money spinners. So, Paulie Malignaggi highlighted one stark reality.

The truth and the path forward

Even if WBC placed him at the top of their contender’s list, it may not necessarily bring him rewards. “The good thing about WBC is even if you’re the number one contender, it doesn’t necessarily mean you have to fight for the title. You can be the number one contender for, like, five years and never fight for the title,” Malignaggi said.

In Canelo’s case there might be exceptions, he believed. Despite the loss, he is still one of the biggest names in boxing.

It is hard to imagine how a loss could end up for the proverbial face of the sport. But that seems to be the case. There has been clamor for a rematch. If open about it, neither Crawford nor Canelo has expressed any commitment to a second fight either.

Perhaps the best recourse for Canelo could be a face-off against a rising star like Hamzah Sheeraz, who defeated Edgar Berlanga recently. A win over Sheeraz and a face-off against the winner of the M’billi-Martinez rematch should help him regain lost ground and maybe claim a rematch with Crawford.

How A Loss To An Inactive Crawford Has Shattered Canelo Alvarez’s Legacy

Teddy Atlas says Canelo Alvarez’s legacy has been “dented” by his defeat against Terence Crawford last week. He states that the only way Canelo (63-3-2, 39 KOs) can continue his career is to “right the wrong” by avenging the defeat against Crawford, if possible.

Of course, the defeat hurts Alvarez’s legacy. Losing to an older, inactive fighter who started his career out at lightweight puts a big dent in Canelo’s popularity with fans. What makes it even more telling is that Crawford was coming off a lackluster performance 13 months prior against Israil Madrimov on August 3, 2024, in a fight that many fans felt he deserved to lose.

The combination of all those things suggests a couple of things: Canelo is a faded fighter: I believe Alvarez has been able to disguise his faded form in the last three years by fighting lower-tier contenders, Jaime Munguia, Edgar Berlanga, and John Ryder.

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Bud is just as beatable: The way Crawford fought against Canelo, he’d likely lose to many, if not all, of the top 168-lb contenders, including the fighters at 160 and 154. I don’t think Crawford could best Christian Mbilli, Osleys Iglesias, Lester Martinez, or Hamzah Sheeraz at 168. He’s too weak, small, and unable to stand his ground and fight. He would have to do that to beat those fighters.

A REMATCH NOT WORTH THE MONEY

Even if Canelo wanted to, would Turki Alalshikh be willing to finance a rematch? Financially, it would not be worth it due to the huge purses that Alvarez and Crawford (42-0, 31 KOs) would likely expect to receive. Performance-wise, neither is worthy of the money they made last time.

You can’t say that Crawford turned in a $50 million performance last week, and Canelo was nowhere near the level of a fighter who was paid $150 million. Turki would be better off going in a different direction rather than wasting money on a second Canelo-Crawford fight that fails to live up to the hype.

Crawford’s “Sink or Swim” Future Fans would be more interested in seeing them move on if they fought fighters where they would be viewed as the underdogs.

Throw Crawford in a sink or swim situation against one of these fighters: David Benavidez Dmitry Bivol Christian Mbilli Artur Beterbiev Putting Crawford in with any of those three would be like feeding a pack of hungry wolves.

I picture a scenario where those guys would have their ears pinned back, attacking Crawford relentlessly, chasing him around the ring in likely one-sided fights. It would be the survival of the fittest. The weak are picked off by the strong.

There would be so much drama and excitement in those fights, with fans wondering whether Crawford would get it or not. New Challenges for an Underdog With Canelo, he’d likely be the underdog at this point, merely fighting Hamzah Sheeraz.

As bad as he looked against Crawford, I could see the oddsmakers making Sheeraz the favorite. Another option for Canelo would be to match him against the winner of the rematch between Chris Eubank Jr. and Conor Benn. You can’t plug Canelo in with any of the top five contenders at 168 and expect him to come out of the fight with his hand raised in my estimation.

I think it wouldn’t end well for Alvarez if you matched him against the top guys, the ones for whatever reason, he’s chosen not to fight in recent years. “He lost to a guy [Terence Crawford] who won his first time at 135, and has been inactive. It does dent his legacy,” said podhost Teddy Atlas on his channel, talking about Canelo Alvarez’s loss to Terence Crawford a week ago.

The defeat exposed Canelo, putting a spotlight on him and his career. It strengthened the argument that some fans have that Alvarez was never as good as he was made out to be. He was a fighter who made controversial decisions in his fights against Gennadiy Golovkin (1 & 2) and Erislandy Lara.

Crawford did the minimum to earn his decision and was nowhere near as impressive as Lara and GGG were in their fights. The difference is that the set of judges gave Terence the decision, but not those fighters. “Does he want to right a wrong? Is he concerned about his legacy?” said Atlas, questioning whether Canelo will push for the rematch with Crawford.

“He drops down a notch from what we had him. The only reason for Canelo to continue is if he doesn’t want to go out this way. He looks to undo what was done in the Crawford fight.” It wouldn’t be the first time Canelo has chosen not to rematch an opponent. After he lost to these two fighters, he never fought them to avenge his defeats: Dmitry Bivol [May 2022] Floyd Mayweather Jr [September 2013]

WAS LARA MORE IMPRESSIVE THAN CRAWFORD?

Some fans would add Erislandy Lara to the list of fighters who beat Canelo from their controversial fight on July 12, 2014. The judges gave Canelo a 12-round split decision, but many people, including myself, believed Erislandy was the winner. A Hit-and-Run Fighting Style The way Lara performed in that fight was arguably superior to how Terence Crawford did in his 12-round unanimous decision over Canelo.

In my view, Lara looked more impressive outboxing a prime Canelo than Crawford, who mostly just ran around the ring, winning rounds by using a hit-and-run style. In contrast, Erislandy stood in front of Canelo, jabbing him repeatedly, blocking and ducking his return fire. The Cuban Lara showed no fear and didn’t resort to running from Alvarez, which further sets his performance apart from how Crawford fought. Those two fights show how subjective scoring can be.

Terence Crawford and Canelo Alvarez could end up facing opponents that fought to a draw earlier this year

Since their blockbuster fight in Las Vegas, there has been a lot of talk about what is next for Terence Crawford and Canelo Alvarez.

Crawford could try to line up some more dream matchups after becoming the undisputed super middleweight champion this past weekend.

It remains unclear whether ‘Bud’ will choose to stay at this weight class, which will impact the direction that he takes moving forward.

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Following questions about his performance at Allegiant Stadium, Alvarez has been advised to complete a retirement tour by facing some of the marquee names he hasn’t competed against before.

While the two potential bouts wouldn’t make for the biggest spectacles, there was a recent contest that could end up producing the next opponents for both men.

Terence Crawford and Canelo Alvarez could end up targeting Carlos Adames and Hamzah Sheeraz

One of the fighters that has consistently targeted Canelo Alvarez in recent times is the highly-touted Brit Hamzah Sheeraz.

Sheeraz recently raised concerns about getting the Alvarez fight in February, which was the original timeframe that was being looked at for the Mexican star’s next bout with Riyadh Season.

The 26-year-old would certainly be an opponent that would make for a very interesting contest, though there might be bigger names on the 35-year-old’s hit list.

One option that could be available to Terence Crawford is fighting Carlos Adames for the WBC middleweight title.

Again, this wouldn’t be the biggest matchup for ‘Bud’, but it would give him the opportunity to move down to the division he skipped over to try and become a six-weight world champion.

Adames recently posted about the prospect of fighting a major name from the super middleweight division on social media.

This past February, Adames retained his WBC middleweight belt after fighting to a draw with Hamzah Sheeraz in Riyadh, ending his challenger’s win streak in the process.

Another fight that went to a draw could have implications for Terence Crawford

While Carlos Adames and Hamzah Sheeraz fought to a draw earlier this year, their bout had nothing on another recent title fight that ended in the same result.

Christian M’billi and Lester Martinez put on a fight of the year contender in their WBC interim super middleweight clash that took place several fights before Canelo Alvarez vs Terence Crawford.

Earlier this week, the WBC ordered negotiations to start for a rematch between the two men in order to determine who will be the mandatory challenger for one of Crawford’s new belts.

There is also a chance that by the time this fight happens, ‘Bud’ may have vacated the title in order to move weight classes.

With Terence Crawford leaving Allegiant Stadium as the undisputed super middleweight champion, much of the boxing landscape has changed.

The result creates a lot of intrigue, and one obvious loser not named Canelo Alvarez.

Alvarez certainly lost a lot on Saturday night. He cedes all his titles to Crawford, leaving him without a world title first the first time since 2015. But as poorly as the night went for him, it was even worse for Jaron ‘Boots’ Ennis.

Without even fighting, Ennis’ career took a major hit on Saturday. More specifically, he lost the biggest opportunity that was potentially on the table. The biggest story of Ennis’ career over the last year has been his case to be Crawford’s next opponent, a narrative that effectively died on Sept. 13.

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The fight is not entirely off the table, but it is holding on by a thread. Losing it does not necessarily hurt Ennis’ career, but it removes the most lucrative opportunity within his grasp.

Jaron Ennis is the biggest loser from Canelo-Crawford fallout

Ennis has been a star on the rise for years and is finally starting to turn the corner. His popularity has increased as his title reign progressed, leading to his 154-pound debut in October against Uisma Lima.

Along with Ennis’ rise in popularity came the fan push for him to fight Crawford. The two share similar career arcs, doing most of their best work at welterweight, before moving up to 154 pounds in the last year.

At 37, Crawford has been open about seeing the light at the end of the tunnel. His activity has taken a nosedive lately, with just two fights since July 2023. At this stage of his career, Crawford is only fighting when it makes sense, and Ennis seemed to fit the bill.

The Alvarez fight certainly fit the bill, but it seemed like just a blip on the radar. Many felt that Crawford would lose as the smaller man. Even with those who believed in his skill set, not many expected a permanent move up to super middleweight.

But throughout the build to the fight, Crawford made it known that he was not taking the fight as a one-off. He dedicated months to putting on an adequate size to make Alvarez respect him as a legitimate 168-pound fighter. The effort was evident in his physique, and ‘Bud’ looked as smooth as ever while fighting with the added weight.

Ennis’ hopes of fighting Crawford went up in flames when he got his hand raised at the end of the night, but it truly died in the post-fight press conference. Crawford rejected any notion that he would return to 154 pounds, saying he would fight out the remainder of his career in his new weight class, if he is returning to the ring at all.

Losing Crawford is far from the end for Ennis, but the massive money fight that seemed just within reach is now gone. Perhaps getting the fight was Ennis’ motivation for moving up in weight to begin with, but regardless, it is now light years away.

Ennis already has his hands full with Lima, but the betting odds suggest he will handle that fight with ease. Winning that fight is priority No. 1, but Ennis needs to impress in his debut if he is going to become the pay-per-view star he believes he can be.

Should he get past Lima, there are still other lucrative options. Sebastian Fundora seems to have the most momentum in the division, with Xander Zayas and Vergil Ortiz Jr. also presenting valuable opportunities. Ennis fighting any one of those three would be enough to headline a fight card that fans would look forward to.

Regardless of what happens next, the Crawford-Ennis discussions will be almost entirely forgotten about a year from now. It might not have ever meant anything to Crawford, but what seemed like a massive opportunity for Ennis just a few months ago has now evaporated.