According to ESPN boxing insider Mike Coppinger, a deal is being finalized for undisputed 168-pound world champion Canelo Alvarez to defend his crown against Edgar Berlanga (22-0, 17 KOs) on September 14th, at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas.
Back in June 2023, Canelo Alvarez signed a three-fight deal with Premier Boxing Champions. It was an intriguing move due to the fact that both the WBC mandatory challenger David Benavidez and the WBA mandatory David Morrell are under the PBC umbrella.
Alvarez made a decision that was clearly off the radar as he signed on to fight the then 154-pound undisputed world champion Jermell Charlo. It was a one-sided affair as Charlo lost by way of unanimous decision.
Despite the fact that Canelo gave us another fight that no one asked for, fight fans remained optimistic because both of Canelo’s mandatories, Benavidez and Morrell were waiting for their opportunity.
After ducking his WBC mandatory challenger David Benavidez for two years, it was becoming painfully obvious that Canelo Alvarez planned on avoiding Benavidez for the remainder of his career.
Fight fans had only seen a sample size of David Morrell (10-0, 9 KOs) but it was easy to identify that he has all the tools. Morrell proved himself to be a threat to Canelo’s crown, and for that reason Morrell was added to Canelo’s ‘not getting a title shot list.’
Fight fans assumed Benavidez or Morrell would be a part of Canelo’s three-fight deal with PBC, but it became evident that Canelo was seeking the easier alternatives. Rumors began to circulate in regards to Alvarez placing Jaime Munguia and Edgar Berlanga on his radar.
Back in May 2024, Canelo Alvarez defeated Jaime Munguia by way of unanimous decision. Now reports are circulating as it relates to the finalization of a deal for a Canelo vs Berlanga clash.
The 34-year-old Canelo Alvarez (61-2-2, 39 KOs) is a future hall of famer, but recently his selection of opponents have been rather disappointing. With that being said, if Canelo signs on to face Edgar Berlanga, will fight fans be interested in this matchup?
Edgar Berlanga started his career with 16 straight first round knockouts. Then he experienced some difficulties when he elevated his level of competition by fighting a few gatekeepers. Berlanga continued to win, but the victories looked less impressive.
Berlanga fought five times and failed to produce a knockout. Finally, in February 2024, Berlanga scored a devastating sixth-round knockout victory over the Irish super-middleweight Padraig McCrory.
Due to the fact that he doesn’t have a signature win against a top contender, the excitement level for a potential Canelo-Berlanga clash is rather low. To take it a step further, outside of Canelo’s core fan base, nobody is really pressed to see this fight.
The 27-year-old Edgar Berlanga has the punching power, but he doesn’t have the skill set or the boxing IQ needed to be competitive against an elite fighter like Canelo Alvarez. When you analyze this fight, Berlanga doesn’t have a legitimate path to victory.
The only way Berlanga can win this fight is by landing a lucky punch or if Canelo ages tremendously between now and September 14th. Other than that, it should be another routine victory for Canelo Alvarez.
You can’t take nothing away from Canelo because he has an impressive resume. However, you can admit to being upset about the way he has deliberately sabotaged the super-middleweight division.
For example, we could have witnessed a blockbuster event if Canelo would have fought David Benavidez. Then we could’ve had the winner of that matchup face David Morrell.
Now, since Canelo hijacked the division by cherry picking and holding the belts hostage from the real contenders, both Benavidez and Morrell have moved up to light-heavyweight. Due to Canelo’s manipulative demeanor, the 168-pound division is currently watered down.
Canelo Alvarez is a legend and when he retires he will be a guaranteed hall of famer, but because of his new habit of cherry picking, some fans would like for him to retire sooner rather than later.
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