Mexico’s Saul “Canelo” Alvarez (46-1-1) will defend his WBC middleweight (72.5kg) title against Britain’s Amir “King” Khan (31-3) in Las Vegas this weekend. It will be 25-year-old Alvarez’s first defence of the world title he won via unanimous decision over Puerto Rico’s Miguel Cotto (40-4) in Las Vegas in November last year.
Amazingly, Alvarez turned professional at just 15 years of age. Nicknamed Canelo (which in Spanish means cinnamon) because of his red hair, the only loss in his stellar career to date was against Floyd Mayweather in 2013 via a unanimous points decision. Mayweather ended his career undefeated in 2015 with a career record of 49-0.
In addition to his win over Cotto, the other major victory in Alvarez’s career so far was a unanimous points decision over American legend Shane Mosley (46-7-1) in 2012. 32 of his 46 career victories (69%) have been by knockout.
While bookmakers have Alvarez as the heavy favourite, many believe that the 29-year-old Khan’s hand speed will test the tough Mexican. He is, however, stepping up in weight to take this fight.
Khan is a former IBF and WBA light-welterweight champion. As a 17-year-old amateur, he won a silver medal for Great Britain in the lightweight division at the Athens Olympics. He has a technical decision over Mexican legend Marco Antonio Barrera (65-6) in 2009 as one of his major career victories. 19 of his 31 career wins (61%) have been by knockout.
The three losses in Khan’s career have been to Colombia’s Breidis Prescott (19-0) by knockout in 2009, America’s Lamont Peterson (29-1-1) by split decision in 2011, and America’s Danny Garcia (23-0) by technical knockout in 2012.
Alvarez has the advantage of size and power, Khan will be relying on speed and boxing skill. However, only Miguel Cotto and American Oscar De La Hoya (39-6) have won world titles at both light-welterweight and middleweight, as Khan is attempting to do.
Regardless of the outcome, there is a lot of global interest in this fight and it will be a big pay day for both boxers.
Who do you think will win?
Let’s get ready to rumble! Pick a fighter and place your bets with PlayUp for great odds. Chances are you’re about to lose. Set a deposit limit.
Nikita Tszyu defended his Australian super welterweight crown. But a fightback from opponent Danilo Creati threatened to spoil everything in the sixth round.
Nikita Tszyu has overcome a nasty mid-fight moment to score a unanimous points win over Danilo Creati and retain his Australian super welterweight title…
A bloodied Tim Tszyu has been cruelly denied in his quest to emulate his legendary father Kostya and become a unified world boxing champion…
Liam Wilson has suffered further heartbreak in Arizona, the Australian boxer losing his super-featherweight world-title fight against Mexican Oscar Valdez. In front of a…
Tim Tszyu has the chance to emulate his legendary father as a unified world boxing champion after the stakes were dramatically raised for his…
Australia's Alexander Volkanovski has lost his UFC featherweight title to Ilia Topuria, with the Spaniard scoring a stunning second round knockout in the main…
