Shawn Porter sees Canelo Alvarez vs. Terence Crawford as a “50-50 fight” because Alvarez is beginning to show signs of wear and tear from a long career. Porter sees the timing of the fight as perfect for both fighters.
Crawford gets a depleted 34-year-old Canelo (62-2-2, 39 KOs) after back-to-back subpar performances, whereas the Mexican gets an opponent that will bring in a lot of money.
Using Terence as the opponent will help Canelo generate more PPV buys and money than he has since his second fight against Gennadiy Golovkin on September 15, 2018.
Other than money, it could be another one-sided affair for Canelo against a frail Crawford, who looked elderly in his narrow win over Israil Madrimov. If that same Crawford shows up for a fight against Canelo, he’s going to be embarrassed, and the fans are going to feel stupid for purchasing the event.
50-50 Fight?
“Terence is already taller than him and has the reach. I’m telling y’all, that’s a 50-50 fight,” said Shawn Porter to Ring Magazine’s YouTube channel about the talked about Canelo Alvarez vs. Terence Crawford fight in September. “It’s actually perfect timing for both guys.
“Canelo Alvarez is losing big-name fighters to fight against. There’s really no one else. Canelo is losing big-name fighters to fight against. There’s really no one else with a big name for him to fight against,” Porter continued.
“[David] Benavidez deserves that fight, but his status isn’t at the level that Canelo [wants]. He kind of forced it with the young kid [Edgar Berlanga] that he just got in the ring with [on September 14th]. He forced it with Edgar,” said Porter.”
I’m not sure what Porter is driving it by saying Benavidez isn’t at the status he needs to be for him to fight Canelo. That doesn’t make any sense. If John Ryder, Edgar Berlanga, and Jaime Munguia were good enough for Canelo to hand-pick them as opponents, Benavidez is deserving.
Obviously, the reason Canelo is considering a fight against the soon-to-be 38-year-old Crawford is because Turki Al-Sheikh is willing to pay him a fortune for the bout.
Canelo is likely assuming that Crawford will be no different than former undisputed junior middleweight champion Jermell Charlo was when he moved up from 154 in 2023 and was way too small and weak to win.
Perfect Timing
“He’s that guy that you can get people to come to the fight, no matter who you’re in the ring with. the same thing with Terence. He’s fighting a Canelo Alvarez, who has been around the block. A Canelo Alvarez who has been in quite a few wars, and I think it’s perfect timing for both guys,” said Porter.
The timing is perfect for Canelo to fight financially but not physically. His last two fights against Edgar Berlanga and Jaime Munguia showed that he’s not the same fighter that he once was and is starting to really slow down. Against Berlanga, Canelo looked bulky and slow, getting hit by a fighter he would have crushed in 2021 and earlier.
The same goes for Alvarez’s fight against Munguia last May. He gassed out after four rounds, and the only reason he dominated was how badly flawed the well-protected Munguia was. He couldn’t a lick but stayed in there because Canelo was not the same fighter he was years earlier.
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