Big Fight Preview: Saul ‘Canelo’ Alvarez vs. Edgar Berlanga

Mexican hero Saul “Canelo” Alvarez goes head-to-head with both Edgar Berlanga and the UFC when he fights Saturday at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas.

Canelo is having his third consecutive fight under the PBC umbrella and aims to pick up where he left off in May, when he fended off the gallant challenge of fellow Mexican Jaime Munguia, whom he floored on his way to a points victory.

It marks the 66th fight of Alvarez’s storied and Hall of Fame career, and the T-Mobile show is being staged simultaneously to the UFC’s huge 306 card at The Sphere a mile or so up The Strip.

When Alvarez boxed Munguia, he was the undisputed super middleweight champion, but he no longer has that distinction after the IBF crudely stripped him for failing to meet his mandatory challenger, William Scull.

Berlanga has found himself atop the WBA ratings and in the opposite corner – on Mexican Independence Day weekend, no less, one of the commercial selling points jumped upon by those hoping the contest does brisk business is the Mexico-Puerto Rico rivalry. Sure, Berlanga was born and bred in New York, but he is of Puerto Rican heritage, which instantly allows a rinse and repeat of marketing materials used throughout the years. And while that “break glass for storyline” use might be tiresome to some, it won’t be to those invested in it and hoping to claim some national pride when all is said and done.

Berlanga, however, is not expected to present Canelo with many problems. In fact, for plenty of fans, skeptics and critics, he is a step down from Munguia.

Still, very few fighters – anywhere from 16-175 pounds – would start as anything other than a healthy underdog against Alvarez.

Canelo is still a star and still one of the best fighters in the sport.

He has long been a master of space, time and distance. He makes people work. He can make them panic. He can be hard to hit, and he can punish you for failing to catch him.

His fundamentals are wire-tight. He has carried his power through the weights. He has become increasingly economical but has remained incredibly effective.

Berlanga’s team wanted him to use his jab more at the start of the Padraig McCrory fight earlier this year, although he had more and more success with the right hand as the fight wore on. That ultimately determined the fight in his favor.

Of course, one of the New Yorker’s selling points is his power. The 27-year-old Berlanga has a shiny KO record, but as he stepped up in class the knockouts faded. His Tyrone Brunson-esque streak stopped (16 first-round KOs in his first 16 fights), and he had to be satisfied with decisions. Sure, he stopped McCrory last time out, but he had to dish out a lot of right hands in the decisive sixth round before the Irishman wilted and his corner tossed in the towel.

As time goes on and Canelo has been more selective about his opposition, he has enjoyed the respect opponents have paid him and the gratitude they have afforded him for providing them with a life-changing opportunity and a life-changing check.

At the kick-off press tour for Canelo-Berlanga, there was plenty of appreciation shown both ways on the first leg of the tour, in New York, before the two sounded off at one another a day later on the West Coast in a far more feisty if slightly insincere exchange.

“I respect my opponents, but I like to respond when they talk,” Canelo said after day two. “I’m going to be at my best on Sept. 14 and I’m not gonna have any compassion for him. I’m going to be different. He needs 20 of him to give me any problems.”

Berlanga pluckily replied: “This is gonna be a firefight. It’s gonna be different. This is a gladiator sport, at the end of the day. We’re looking to take each other out. It’s going to the next level.

“On Sept. 14, it’s fireworks. He sees it in my eyes. I’m never scared. I’m coming to take his spot in this sport.”

One day the rivalry looked dull, the next day the feud – such as it is – looked forced. But whatever the mutual respect may be, in the ring Canelo will have to keep his wits about him.

Berlanga picked up a six-month ban after biting Alexis Angulo in 2022 and apologized afterwards, saying he was “in the moment.” But even against McCrory, he picked up warnings for straying low with a left hook and using his elbow.

Canelo will not humor such insolence. He can still change up and down gears rapidly if he feels the need. In fact, if Berlanga tries any rough stuff, he might bring out a more spiteful hunter and this matured sniper will not have the patience or tolerance to forgive rough indiscretions.

Berlanga has talked about ring intelligence and IQ, but Canelo has a master’s and PhD in that. Berlanga, by comparison, is still in high school.

“He’s fought everybody and he’s seen it all,” Berlanga admitted. “The difference in this fight isn’t physical. It’s about IQ and intelligence in that ring. That’s gonna make the difference. You could have all the power in the world, but at this level, it’s about intelligence.”

“Take it easy, man, because your turn is coming,” Canelo retorted. “He thinks he has more intelligence than me and everyone I’ve fought. C’mon, bro, he’s not gonna be able to touch me. I wanna see him try.”

Although Canelo might have stumbled innocuously down the pound-for-pound lists following his points loss to light heavyweight Dmitry Bivol – a man who remains in the sights of a vengeance-minded Alvarez – Canelo still has arguably the biggest name on the sport’s active roster and still merits a spot on those hyperbolic lists of modern greats. He might have lost to Bivol, but at 168 he has been supreme and remains one of the sport’s great fighters plying his trade today.

He is not the Canelo of old, but he is not an old Canelo, either. He has adapted and, some might suggest, improved with age. He has swapped intensity for economy and traded volume for precision. He is a master of his craft, someone who began his pro apprenticeship at the age of 15. In fact, by the time he was Berlanga’s age – 27 – Canelo had boxed for pay more than 50 times. When Canelo turned pro, Berlanga was just eight years old, and when Canelo fought in Las Vegas for the first time, against Jose Miguel Cotto in 2010, Berlanga was barely 13.

Berlanga, of course, has talked a good fight. He has promised to deliver everything he has, and has implied that, by means of earning his spot as Alvarez’s lucrative dance partner, he is prepared to go out on his shield.

Berlanga has spent months on the receiving end of the ire of fight fans around the world, and I sympathize with him in that respect. Even his promoter, Eddie Hearn, declared as recently as a fortnight ago that Berlanga was an acid test or two away from knowing whether he was ready for the Mexican. Chances are he is now going to find out the hard way, but much of the criticism coming Berlanga’s way has been personal and unkind. It’s not his fault he is ranked No. 1 by the WBA while occupying the eighth slot with the WBC and the fourth position with the WBO. It is not his fault his name is not David Benavidez, and it is not his fault Canelo has opted to face him instead. As Hearn pointed out, what do you do when boxing’s lottery ticket is handed to you? Give it back? The payday will earn Berlanga – a father of a young son, named Chosen – generational wealth. Invest wisely and he will never have to work or fight again. And neither will his boy. And I’m sure, if asked, Berlanga would say he is doing what he’s doing to not only give them a better future but to secure it. Also, it is not like he won’t earn it the hard way when he’s in there.

Berlanga is a steep underdog for a good reason. Sure, he had that long string of KOs, but as soon as the competition only marginally improved he was forced to win decisions. McCrory was just what Berlanga needed to position himself for Canelo, allowing Berlanga to bank a few rounds while still being able to stop an opponent who looked like he might be able to stick around. But it was nothing like the “friction fight” Hearn referred to, the litmus test that showed Berlanga – and his many, many critics – he is ready for the might of Canelo.

The feeling is that Berlanga, desperate to prove he deserves to be in there, is spared further punishment by the referee or his corner, trainer Marc Ferrait, sometime after the halfway point.