LAS VEGAS – For three years Saul “Canelo” Álvarez has effortlessly slid between three weight classes, collecting titles between 160 and 175 pounds, knocking out some of boxing’s best along the way. So it came as no surprise that when asked about the possibility of facing heavyweight titleholder Oleksandr Usyk in the future, Álvarez didn’t flinch.
“I like it,” Álvarez said. “Why not? I’ll fight everyone. I don’t f------ care.”
No kidding. At 31 and atop every credible pound-for-pound list, Álvarez (57-1-2) is at the peak of his powers. “Ask him if he can beat Anthony Joshua,” said Álvarez’s promoter, Eddie Hearn, “and he’ll probably tell you yes to that, too.” Last year, Álvarez completed an 11-month housecleaning of the super middleweight division, ripping belts from Callum Smith, Billy Joe Saunders and Caleb Plant, handing each their first loss. On Saturday, Álvarez will take the first step toward supremacy at light heavyweight when he takes on Dmitry Bivol, a—wait for it—undefeated 175-pounder who has held a version of the title since 2017.
It's a difficult fight, Álvarez admits.
Though not one he can see himself losing.
“It’s boxing but I feel nobody can beat me right now,” Álvarez told Sports Illustrated.
“I feel I’m in my prime. No disrespect to other fighters. Great fighters [are out] there, but I feel in my prime. I feel strong. I feel at my best.”
Who could argue? Smith finished his fight with Álvarez with a detached bicep. Saunders walked out of the ring with a broken face. Ryan Garcia, Álvarez’s ex-stablemate, described Álvarez’s speed as “cartoonish.”
“He’s explosive, he’s fast, he’s confident and his head movement has improved,” said Sergio Mora, a former junior middleweight champion. “It’s all come together for him.”
Against Bivol, Álvarez should be challenged. Bivol (19–0) is a decorated amateur with a flawless professional record. He has wins over Sullivan Barrera, Jean Pascal and Joe Smith. Smith, who currently holds a version of the light heavyweight title, was virtually shut out. Bivol’s strength is a piston-rod jab, a punch Álvarez can be susceptible to. Gennadiy Golovkin landed it frequently in his two fights with Álvarez, and Sergey Kovalev had a measure of success with it in 2019 before Álvarez knocked him out.
“He’s a good fighter,” Álvarez told SI. “Difficult fighter, too. He’s a fighter who fights at distance, [maintains] good distance. He moves [well], he’s fast for the division, he’s strong. He’s a solid champion at 175.”
The key to beating him?
“Be patient,” Álvarez said. “Find a way to go inside. And be patient.”
Bivol’s critics will say he has never fought anyone close to Álvarez’s level. And they are right. Unfortunately, that’s the way it goes with Álvarez. When fighters think they have any chance of facing him—and picking up the payday that comes with it—they play it safe. Plant faced not one but two mandatory challengers to his super middleweight title before facing him, skipping a coin flip fight with David Benavidez. Jermall Charlo, the runner-up in Saturday’s Álvarez sweepstakes, passed on (very) public challenges from Benavidez and Demetrius Andrade in the hopes of landing the lucrative fight. Bivol defended his title twice last year but showed no interest in a dangerous fight with Gilberto Ramirez.
“Of course I feel pressure,” Bivol said. “I feel pressure every time. Many people feel pressure. But part of being champion is to mentally be there, to be confident and get over that.”
Bivol’s advantage could be the weight. Álvarez looked sharp in his first foray at 175 pounds, stopping Kovalev in the 11th round in 2019. But Kovalev was long faded, and facing Álvarez just 2 ½ months following a physical fight with Anthony Yarde. Bivol, 31, is an in-his-prime career-long light heavyweight who has shown a granite chin (ask Smith) and, at least early in his career, knockout power. Recently, Sugar Ray Leonard recalled his brief foray into light heavyweight waters, in 1988, when Leonard took on 175-pound titleholder Donny Lalonde at a catchweight. “When he hit me for the first time,” Leonard told SI. “I knew I was in for a long night.
Also at stake: A third fight with Golovkin, which Álvarez, with a win over Bivol, is locked into in September. Boxing purists scoff at a trilogy fight with Golovkin, who battled Álvarez to a (very) disputed draw in ’17 and a narrow-decision defeat a year later. They point to Golovkin’s age (40) and signs of decline. But Golovkin is 4–0 since his loss to Álvarez. He holds two pieces of the 160-pound title after last month’s knockout win over Ryota Murata. And while Benavidez or Andrade could be more challenging, a third fight with Triple-G is sure to attract mainstream interest—and remains one of the biggest fights in boxing. Plus: Álvarez says a fight with Golovkin is personal. Said Álvarez, “He talks a lot of s---.”
And from there? Next month’s light heavyweight title unification fight between Smith and Artur Beterbiev is interesting. Hearn, who has a three-fight deal with Álvarez, would like to stage a fight between Álvarez (again, assuming a win over Bivol) and the Smith-Beterbiev winner next year. Álvarez’s trainer/manager/guru Eddy Reynoso has lobbied for Álvarez to move up to cruiserweight to face titleholder Junior Makabu. And heavyweight? Álvarez says that if Usyk, who has a stiff test of his own this summer when he takes on Joshua in rematch of his decision win last fall, can make 201 pounds, he’s ready to take the fight.
“The ability to conquer categories that were impossible for a Mexican, for a person of my stature, well, it’s something historic,” Álvarez said. “And it’s what I want to do in my career. [Make] history.”
