Saul ‘Canelo’ Alvarez vs. Christian Mbilli - October 31, 2026

[Ruthless-RKO]

Christian Mbilli-Saul ‘Canelo’ Alvarez showdown postponed to late October

The showdown between WBC world super-middleweight champion Christian “Solide” Mbilli and superstar WBC No. 1-ranked contender Saul “Canelo” Alvarez has been postponed to late October.

According to The Ring Magazine, the fight will still take place in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, but not on its originally scheduled date of Saturday, September 12.

Instead, 31-year-old Mbilli, 29-0-1 (24 KOs), and 35-year-old Alvarez, 63-3-2 (39 KOs) will now meet as part of the Riyadh Season 2026-2027 festivities.

Alvarez lost the WBC super-middleweight belt in a superfight showdown against the now-retired Terence Crawford in September 2025. Upon Crawford’s exit, Mbilli, who won the interim WBC championship by stopping Maciej Sulecki in one round in June of 2025, was then elevated to full champion.

[Ruthless-RKO]

Arum: Canelo 'belongs on golf course,' not vs. Mbilli

Bob Arum is adamant that Canelo Alvarez’s career is in the rough.

“Alvarez belongs on the golf course, not in the ring,” Arum told The Ring. “I think Alvarez is finished.”

Arum is certainly biased with his assessment of Alvarez, who turns 36 later this month.

After all, the fighter he co-promotes in WBC super middleweight champion Christian Mbilli will make his first title defense against him in October.

“I have no idea if Alvarez should retire or not, but I like Mbilli in the fight,” said Arum.

Mbilli (29-0-1, 24 KOs) is coming off a hard-fought split draw against Lester Martinez in September. The fight took place on the undercard of Canelo Alvarez’s loss against Terence Crawford at Allegiant Stadium in Las Vegas.

Alvarez (63-3-2, 39 KOs) has not fought since dropping his undisputed super middleweight crown to the undersized Crawford, who jumped up two weight classes to beat the Mexican star.

In October, Alvarez underwent left elbow surgery and two months later, Mbilli was elevated to full titleholder status, just as Crawford announced his retirement.

“I’m not surprised that Alvarez looked bad against Crawford,” said Arum.

“Terence is a great fighter. Canelo has been a tough guy and a good fighter but not a great fighter on the level of Crawford, who's totally unique and very skillful. Crawford has all of their numbers.”

Alvarez is ranked No. 1 by The Ring at 168 pounds and finds himself in unfamiliar territory as a contender without a crown for the first time since 2015.

Mbilli is rated two places below him at super middleweight, with a series of intrigued names monitoring this situation closely including new WBO beltholder Hamzah Sheeraz and IBF titleholder Osleys Iglesias.

Oddsmakers have installed Alvarez as a -300 betting favorite and Mbilli as a +230 underdog, according to DraftKings.

[Ruthless-RKO]

Lindolfo Delgado vs Arthur Biyarslanov vacant title fight joins Canelo vs Mbilli

Undefeated super lightweights will meet for Richardson Hitchins’ former title this October in Riyadh

Christian Mbilli’s postponed title defense against Canelo Alvarez has its first undercard bout, as ESPN KnockOut reports that Lindolfo Delgado will meet Arthur Biyarslanov that day for the vacant IBF super lightweight title.

Former Olympian Delgado (24-0, 16 KO) barely escaped a final eliminator against Gabriel Gollaz Valenzuela last November, earning a shot at reigning champion Richardson Hitchins in the process. Hitchins wound up flubbing his weight cut for a planned defense against Oscar Duarte, signing with Zuffa Boxing, and subsequently vacating his belt to move to 147.

Enter Eye of the Tiger Management’s Biyarslanov (21-0, 17 KO). “The Wolf” likewise competed in Rio, winning his first bout before running into Artem Harutyunynan in the Round of 16, then turned pro two years later. His two biggest professional victories to date have come over faded veterans Mohamed Mimoune and Sergey Lipinets.

Pretty solid matchup; let’s see if they can maintain at least this level of quality as “Mexico vs the World” fills out.

[Ruthless-RKO]

Canelo Alvarez vs Christian Mbilli gets new official date in October

Canelo Alvarez has a new date for his fight with Christian Mbilli

Canelo Alvarez’s fight with Christian Mbilli will now be held on October 31, Canelo told Ariel Helwani today.

The bout had originally been scheduled for September 12 in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, but a postponement was announced about three weeks ago, with no direct reason given.

Canelo now says that “some problems in (his) family” came up, and that he wasn’t ready to go into training camp because he needed to deal with that first.

Canelo (63-3-2, 39 KO) will be challenging for the WBC super middleweight title held by Mbilli (29-0-1, 24 KO), who was promoted from interim champion status following the retirement of Terence “Bud” Crawford, after Crawford beat Canelo to become undisputed champion at 168 lbs in September 2025.

Canelo hasn’t fought since then, and Mbilli will have been inactive the same amount of time, as his last fight came on the undercard of Canelo vs Crawford, where he fought Lester Martinez — now the WBC interim champion — to a draw.

The fight will still take place in Riyadh and air on DAZN pay-per-view or their “Ultimate” tier.

September 12 will still have a big fight, as that’s the date for the Ryan Garcia vs Conor Benn welterweight title clash from Zuffa Boxing on Paramount+.

[Ruthless-RKO]

Canelo Alvarez vs. Christian Mbilli now set for Oct. 31

Canelo Alvarez-Christian Mbilli has a new date pencilled in.

Alvarez announced during “The Ariel Helwani Show” on Wednesday that he’ll challenge Mbilli for the WBC super middleweight title on October 31. The fight's location remains in flux due to the war between the United States and Iran, which has attacked Saudi Arabia.

Their 12-round fight was originally scheduled for September 12 in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, before it was pushed back to late October. Alvarez (63-3-2, 39 KOs), The Ring’s No. 1-ranked super middleweight, said the date changed due to a family matter that affected the timing of his training camp.

Mexico’s Alvarez last fought September 13, when Terence Crawford beat him by unanimous decision for The Ring, IBF, WBA, WBC and WBO super middleweight titles at Allegiant Stadium in Las Vegas.

The last time Alvarez, 36, had over a year-long layoff was between his 11th-round stoppage of then-WBO light heavyweight champion Sergey Kovalev in November 2019 and his unanimous decision win over Callum Smith for The Ring, WBA and WBC super middleweight titles in December 2020.

Mbilli (29-0-1, 24 KOs), The Ring’s No. 3-ranked super middleweight, held the interim WBC title and was elevated to full champion after Crawford (42-0, 31 KOs) retired in December.

The 31-year-old champ from Yaounde, Cameroon, who is now based out of Montreal, last fought to a split draw in a 10-round fight against Lester Martinez on the Alvarez-Crawford undercard.

[Ruthless-RKO]

Canelo Alvarez sets new Halloween date verus Christian Mbilli

Canelo Alvarez has set his return bout for Halloween in Saudi Arabia, when the four-division and former unified super-middleweight champion will seek to reclaim a 168lbs strap from new champion Christian Mbilli.

Explaining that family needs took him away from training camp, Mexico’s Alvarez, 63-3-2 (39 KOs), told Ariel Helwani he needed to postpone the planned September 12 date that ultimately fell on the WBC welterweight title defense by new champion Ryan Garcia versus England’s Conor Benn in Las Vegas.

“All good and ready to train,” Alvarez told Helwani.

Alvarez said while he prefers fighting in the U.S. and Mexico, he’s content with the placement of this bout in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, and vows to return to his normal stomping grounds.

“It is what it is,” said Alvarez in a nod to the financial support of Saudi Arabia and its boxing financier Turki Alalshikh.

Alvarez said he hasn’t watched a replay of his last bout there, a dull victory over Germany’s William Scull that forced his fight to occur in the early morning hours.

He said he was similarly disappointed in his September loss to five-division champion Terence Crawford, who has since retired.

“My mind wasn’t right. My mind wasn’t there,” Alvarez said of the defeat, crediting Crawford as a good fighter.

He said he’d be open to a Crawford rematch.

“[Crawford’s retirement] surprised me,” Alvarez said. “I hope so [for the rematch]. I think he’ll come [to fight] again.”

Alvarez said he is planning “three or more fights” and will turn his attention to his own businesses, but not boxing promotion.

He did, however, repeat that boxing is the top combat sport over MMA, and urged promoters to work together for the betterment of the sport.

The October 31 card is also expected to include an IBF 140lbs title fight between Lindolfo Delgado and Arthur Biyarslanov amid reports a super-middleweight bout between WBA top-ranked contenders Jose Armando Resendiz and Bektemir Melikuziev could also land on the card.

[Eolaithe]

Canelo says he intends to fight only three more times before hanging up his gloves, and I assume this doesn’t include the upcoming Christian Mbilli bout.

For those final fights, the realistic, commercially strong, and winnable options for a past-his-prime version of Canelo are (in no particular order):

Hamzah Sheeraz, in a unification fight (most likely option).

Dmitry Bivol at 168lbs (allowing the Mexican to avenge one of his losses, but why risk another defeat before retirement if there is no commercial appetite to orchestrate the rematch?).

Terence Crawford, but only if Turki Alalshikh is willing to pay the retired all‑time great $50m+.

David Benavidez is no longer an option. He’s far too big to return to 168lbs, and an aging Canelo isn’t going to face a 200‑plus‑pound version of Benavidez at light heavyweight or cruiserweight — especially given Benavidez’s own admission that he cuts 50lbs to make 175lbs and rehydrated to around 210lbs when he entered the ring for the Ramirez bout. That ship has sailed.

A longshot option is Jermall Charlo, if the American scores a meaningful win against an opponent with a decent name (possibly against Spence Jr.). It's an easy, highly-profitable domestic American pay-per-view bout for Canelo if this fight were made.

A remote possibility is Chris Eubank Jr. He’s low‑risk and high‑reward, but he appears badly faded and won’t be considered unless he produces a meaningful win — which I don't think he's capable of. But if he defies my expectations, he'll jump to the front of the Canelo "payday" queue if he gains a decent victory.

I don't expect to see Canelo to engage in title unification bouts against Jaime Munguia (there's no appetite to see a one-sided rematch) or Osleys Iglesias (high-risk, zero reward and the Mexican has already stated that he's not interested in the bout).

[MPW]

Canelo says he intends to fight only three more times before hanging up his gloves, and I assume this doesn’t include the upcoming Christian Mbilli bout.

For those final fights, the realistic, commercially strong, and winnable options for a past-his-prime version of Canelo are (in no particular order):

Hamzah Sheeraz, in a unification fight (most likely option).

Dmitry Bivol at 168lbs (allowing the Mexican to avenge one of his losses, but why risk another defeat before retirement if there is no commercial appetite to orchestrate the rematch?).

Terence Crawford, but only if Turki Alalshikh is willing to pay the retired all‑time great $50m+.

David Benavidez is no longer an option. He’s far too big to return to 168lbs, and an aging Canelo isn’t going to face a 200‑plus‑pound version of Benavidez at light heavyweight or cruiserweight — especially given Benavidez’s own admission that he cuts 50lbs to make 175lbs and rehydrated to around 210lbs when he entered the ring for the Ramirez bout. That ship has sailed.

A longshot option is Jermall Charlo, if the American scores a meaningful win against an opponent with a decent name (possibly against Spence Jr.). It's an easy, highly-profitable domestic American pay-per-view bout for Canelo if this fight were made.

A remote possibility is Chris Eubank Jr. He’s low‑risk and high‑reward, but he appears badly faded and won’t be considered unless he produces a meaningful win — which I don't think he's capable of. But if he defies my expectations, he'll jump to the front of the Canelo "payday" queue if he gains a decent victory.

I don't expect to see Canelo to engage in title unification bouts against Jaime Munguia (there's no appetite to see a one-sided rematch) or Osleys Iglesias (high-risk, zero reward and the Mexican has already stated that he's not interested in the bout).

Personally, I would like to see Mbilli put an end to the saga with a convincing and undeniable victory.

That being said, years ago I was a big Alvarez fan, especially when he was a boxer who didn't shy away from a challenge, eagerly taking any and all of them head-on. But over time he became a diva, a fighter who benefitted from and relied on favorable judging to be gifted unwarranted decisions, one who cherrypicked safe and undeserving opponents like a king granting an audience to his serfs, a boxer who seemed uninterested and bored in the ring beyond counting the spoils, and one who failed a drug test but, with a wink and a nod, saw the rules changed to lessen the impact.

[Cent0089]

Canelo says he intends to fight only three more times before hanging up his gloves, and I assume this doesn’t include the upcoming Christian Mbilli bout.

For those final fights, the realistic, commercially strong, and winnable options for a past-his-prime version of Canelo are (in no particular order):

Hamzah Sheeraz, in a unification fight (most likely option).

Dmitry Bivol at 168lbs (allowing the Mexican to avenge one of his losses, but why risk another defeat before retirement if there is no commercial appetite to orchestrate the rematch?).

Terence Crawford, but only if Turki Alalshikh is willing to pay the retired all‑time great $50m+.

David Benavidez is no longer an option. He’s far too big to return to 168lbs, and an aging Canelo isn’t going to face a 200‑plus‑pound version of Benavidez at light heavyweight or cruiserweight — especially given Benavidez’s own admission that he cuts 50lbs to make 175lbs and rehydrated to around 210lbs when he entered the ring for the Ramirez bout. That ship has sailed.

A longshot option is Jermall Charlo, if the American scores a meaningful win against an opponent with a decent name (possibly against Spence Jr.). It's an easy, highly-profitable domestic American pay-per-view bout for Canelo if this fight were made.

A remote possibility is Chris Eubank Jr. He’s low‑risk and high‑reward, but he appears badly faded and won’t be considered unless he produces a meaningful win — which I don't think he's capable of. But if he defies my expectations, he'll jump to the front of the Canelo "payday" queue if he gains a decent victory.

I don't expect to see Canelo to engage in title unification bouts against Jaime Munguia (there's no appetite to see a one-sided rematch) or Osleys Iglesias (high-risk, zero reward and the Mexican has already stated that he's not interested in the bout).

Personally, I would like to see Mbilli put an end to the saga with a convincing and undeniable victory.

That being said, years ago I was a big Alvarez fan, especially when he was a boxer who didn't shy away from a challenge, eagerly taking any and all of them head-on. But over time he became a diva, a fighter who benefitted from and relied on favorable judging to be gifted unwarranted decisions, one who cherrypicked safe and undeserving opponents like a king granting an audience to his serfs, a boxer who seemed uninterested and bored in the ring beyond counting the spoils, and one who failed a drug test but, with a wink and a nod, saw the rules changed to lessen the impact.

Cherry picking? He literally faced best boxers in last 8 or 9 years with exception of Yildrim and Fielding. Faced the best and was not afraid to take a L. Fought 20 times in last decade. Only one guy in all of boxing did better in last decade and that is Usyk. And now, far past his prime, he chose to face beast like Mbilli.

[MPW]

Canelo says he intends to fight only three more times before hanging up his gloves, and I assume this doesn’t include the upcoming Christian Mbilli bout.

For those final fights, the realistic, commercially strong, and winnable options for a past-his-prime version of Canelo are (in no particular order):

Hamzah Sheeraz, in a unification fight (most likely option).

Dmitry Bivol at 168lbs (allowing the Mexican to avenge one of his losses, but why risk another defeat before retirement if there is no commercial appetite to orchestrate the rematch?).

Terence Crawford, but only if Turki Alalshikh is willing to pay the retired all‑time great $50m+.

David Benavidez is no longer an option. He’s far too big to return to 168lbs, and an aging Canelo isn’t going to face a 200‑plus‑pound version of Benavidez at light heavyweight or cruiserweight — especially given Benavidez’s own admission that he cuts 50lbs to make 175lbs and rehydrated to around 210lbs when he entered the ring for the Ramirez bout. That ship has sailed.

A longshot option is Jermall Charlo, if the American scores a meaningful win against an opponent with a decent name (possibly against Spence Jr.). It's an easy, highly-profitable domestic American pay-per-view bout for Canelo if this fight were made.

A remote possibility is Chris Eubank Jr. He’s low‑risk and high‑reward, but he appears badly faded and won’t be considered unless he produces a meaningful win — which I don't think he's capable of. But if he defies my expectations, he'll jump to the front of the Canelo "payday" queue if he gains a decent victory.

I don't expect to see Canelo to engage in title unification bouts against Jaime Munguia (there's no appetite to see a one-sided rematch) or Osleys Iglesias (high-risk, zero reward and the Mexican has already stated that he's not interested in the bout).

Personally, I would like to see Mbilli put an end to the saga with a convincing and undeniable victory.

That being said, years ago I was a big Alvarez fan, especially when he was a boxer who didn't shy away from a challenge, eagerly taking any and all of them head-on. But over time he became a diva, a fighter who benefitted from and relied on favorable judging to be gifted unwarranted decisions, one who cherrypicked safe and undeserving opponents like a king granting an audience to his serfs, a boxer who seemed uninterested and bored in the ring beyond counting the spoils, and one who failed a drug test but, with a wink and a nod, saw the rules changed to lessen the impact.

Cherry picking? He literally faced best boxers in last 8 or 9 years with exception of Yildrim and Fielding. Faced the best and was not afraid to take a L. Fought 20 times in last decade. Only one guy in all of boxing did better in last decade and that is Usyk. And now, far past his prime, he chose to face beast like Mbilli.

I would hardly consider Scull, Berlanga, Munguia, and Ryder among the best boxers in the last decade - or any decade, for that matter - and they are four of his last six opponents. I'll give him props for taking on Crawford, which was a lose-lose proposition (no credit if he had beat the smaller man but a lot of criticism after he lost to him). In the other one of those most-recent six, the fight against the enigmatic Charlo could have been an excellent one, but only Alvarez, to his credit, showed up to fight while Charlo came for a payday.

[zorndeslammes]

Having a hard time picturing this bout taking place in Saudi Arabia anytime this year given current dynamics. Any chatter about moving it to Vegas or it just being abandoned entirely if it can't be a sportwashing thing?

[Ruthless-RKO]

WBC will sanction Mbilli vs. Alvarez
http://www.boxingtalk.com/WBC-will-sanction-Mbilli-vs-Alvarez

Fomrer multi-division champion Saul “Canelo” Alvarez has confirmed that his comeback bout against undefeated WBC super middleweight champion Christian Mbilli will now take place on October 31st in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. The fight was originally scheduled for September 12th but was postponed due to personal matters that delayed the Mexican star’s training camp. The WBC announced that its super middleweight championship will be on the line. Alvarez will be looking to return to the top of the division, while Mbilli will be making the first defense of the title he inherited after being elevated from interim champion to full WBC champion. Alvarez is a four-division champ with a pro record of 63-3-2. He lost the world super middleweight championship to Terence Crawford last September. With Crawford announcing his retirement after defeating Alvarez, Mbilli was named the WBC champion. His record is 32-0-1 including the World Series of Boxing. Both fighters have been inactive since September 2025, so this showdown promises to be one of the most significant boxing events of the year.

[Eolaithe]

I would hardly consider Scull, Berlanga, Munguia, and Ryder among the best boxers in the last decade - or any decade, for that matter - and they are four of his last six opponents. I'll give him props for taking on Crawford, which was a lose-lose proposition (no credit if he had beat the smaller man but a lot of criticism after he lost to him). In the other one of those most-recent six, the fight against the enigmatic Charlo could have been an excellent one, but only Alvarez, to his credit, showed up to fight while Charlo came for a payday.

Can you name ten fighters that consistently faced better opposition within the last ten years than the fighters that Canelo fought (i.e. like-for-like comparison of the opponents both men competed against since 2016)?

• Amir Khan (Former light-welterweight world champion; former Ring No. 1 at 140lbs)
• Liam Smith (Reigning WBO super-welterweight world champion; defending champion)
• Julio César Chávez Jr. (Former WBC middleweight world champion; former Ring-ranked middleweight)
• Gennadiy Golovkin (×3) (Unified/lineal middleweight champion; long-reigning defending champion; consensus pound-for-pound top-10 fighter, widely top-3 at the first two fights)
• Daniel Jacobs (IBF middleweight world champion; former WBA champion; Ring/ESPN top-3 middleweight)
• Sergey Kovalev (Reigning WBO light-heavyweight world champion; former unified champion; former Ring/ESPN No. 1 light-heavyweight)
• Callum Smith (Undefeated WBA (Super) and Ring super-middleweight champion; Ring/ESPN No. 1 at 168lbs)
• Avni Yıldırım (WBC mandatory challenger for the super-middleweight title)
• Billy Joe Saunders (Undefeated WBO super-middleweight and middleweight world champion; Ring top-3 at 168lbs)
• Caleb Plant (Undefeated IBF super-middleweight world champion; defending champion)
• Dmitry Bivol (Undefeated WBA light-heavyweight super champion; long-reigning defending champion; Ring/ESPN No. 1 light-heavyweight; pound-for-pound top-10)
• John Ryder (WBO interim world champion; WBO mandatory challenger; Ring top-10 super-middleweight)
• Jermell Charlo (Undisputed super-welterweight champion; reigning four-belt champion; pound-for-pound top-10)
• Jaime Munguía (Former WBO super-welterweight world champion; undefeated at the time; WBC mandatory challenger; Ring top-5 super-middleweight contender)
• Edgar Berlanga (Undefeated mandatory challenger; WBA No. 1/WBO top-ranked contender; Ring top-10 super-middleweight)
• William Scull (IBF super-middleweight world champion; undefeated reigning champion)
• Terence Crawford (Undefeated four-weight world champion; two-weight undisputed champion entering the bout; consensus pound-for-pound No. 1 or No. 2)
• Christian Mbilli (WBC 168lbs world champion; consensus top-3 super-middleweight)

[PRINCEKOOL]

Personally, I would like to see Mbilli put an end to the saga with a convincing and undeniable victory.

That being said, years ago I was a big Alvarez fan, especially when he was a boxer who didn't shy away from a challenge, eagerly taking any and all of them head-on. But over time he became a diva, a fighter who benefitted from and relied on favorable judging to be gifted unwarranted decisions, one who cherrypicked safe and undeserving opponents like a king granting an audience to his serfs, a boxer who seemed uninterested and bored in the ring beyond counting the spoils, and one who failed a drug test but, with a wink and a nod, saw the rules changed to lessen the impact.

Cherry picking? He literally faced best boxers in last 8 or 9 years with exception of Yildrim and Fielding. Faced the best and was not afraid to take a L. Fought 20 times in last decade. Only one guy in all of boxing did better in last decade and that is Usyk. And now, far past his prime, he chose to face beast like Mbilli.

I would hardly consider Scull, Berlanga, Munguia, and Ryder among the best boxers in the last decade - or any decade, for that matter - and they are four of his last six opponents. I'll give him props for taking on Crawford, which was a lose-lose proposition (no credit if he had beat the smaller man but a lot of criticism after he lost to him). In the other one of those most-recent six, the fight against the enigmatic Charlo could have been an excellent one, but only Alvarez, to his credit, showed up to fight while Charlo came for a payday.

They were all contenders, Canelo Alvarez still has a better overall resume than Terrence Crawford 'Alvarez has fought and beaten better fighters than Crawford consistently during his career'.

Note: Shane Mosley, Miguel Cotto, Erislandy Lara, Gennady Golovkin 'the list goes on'.

Canelo Alvarez rose up in the sport, during the conclusive stages of the second greatest welterweight era of all-times 'and became one the premier champions to take over the sport after Floyd Mayweather Junior's retirement'.

It is clear that Canelo Alvarez is no longer at his peak 'but he is still fighting at championship level in the game. And that deserves big credit' etc.

[MPW]

I would hardly consider Scull, Berlanga, Munguia, and Ryder among the best boxers in the last decade - or any decade, for that matter - and they are four of his last six opponents. I'll give him props for taking on Crawford, which was a lose-lose proposition (no credit if he had beat the smaller man but a lot of criticism after he lost to him). In the other one of those most-recent six, the fight against the enigmatic Charlo could have been an excellent one, but only Alvarez, to his credit, showed up to fight while Charlo came for a payday.

Can you name ten fighters that consistently faced better opposition within the last ten years than the fighters that Canelo fought (i.e. like-for-like comparison of the opponents both men competed against since 2016)?

• Amir Khan (Former light-welterweight world champion; former Ring No. 1 at 140lbs)
• Liam Smith (Reigning WBO super-welterweight world champion; defending champion)
• Julio César Chávez Jr. (Former WBC middleweight world champion; former Ring-ranked middleweight)
• Gennadiy Golovkin (×3) (Unified/lineal middleweight champion; long-reigning defending champion; consensus pound-for-pound top-10 fighter, widely top-3 at the first two fights)
• Daniel Jacobs (IBF middleweight world champion; former WBA champion; Ring/ESPN top-3 middleweight)
• Sergey Kovalev (Reigning WBO light-heavyweight world champion; former unified champion; former Ring/ESPN No. 1 light-heavyweight)
• Callum Smith (Undefeated WBA (Super) and Ring super-middleweight champion; Ring/ESPN No. 1 at 168lbs)
• Avni Yıldırım (WBC mandatory challenger for the super-middleweight title)
• Billy Joe Saunders (Undefeated WBO super-middleweight and middleweight world champion; Ring top-3 at 168lbs)
• Caleb Plant (Undefeated IBF super-middleweight world champion; defending champion)
• Dmitry Bivol (Undefeated WBA light-heavyweight super champion; long-reigning defending champion; Ring/ESPN No. 1 light-heavyweight; pound-for-pound top-10)
• John Ryder (WBO interim world champion; WBO mandatory challenger; Ring top-10 super-middleweight)
• Jermell Charlo (Undisputed super-welterweight champion; reigning four-belt champion; pound-for-pound top-10)
• Jaime Munguía (Former WBO super-welterweight world champion; undefeated at the time; WBC mandatory challenger; Ring top-5 super-middleweight contender)
• Edgar Berlanga (Undefeated mandatory challenger; WBA No. 1/WBO top-ranked contender; Ring top-10 super-middleweight)
• William Scull (IBF super-middleweight world champion; undefeated reigning champion)
• Terence Crawford (Undefeated four-weight world champion; two-weight undisputed champion entering the bout; consensus pound-for-pound No. 1 or No. 2)
• Christian Mbilli (WBC 168lbs world champion; consensus top-3 super-middleweight)

Ten? There's probably not three fighters who have faced a comparable lineup over the past ten years. Usyk comes to mind, but I'm not sure there is anyone else.

Prior to the last three years or so, Alvarez fought a who's who of fighters from MW through LHW, letting some of those bouts marinate to his benefit. My point was that with few exceptions (Crawford and, to a lesser extent, Charlo) his last six opponents were carefully selected and posed little threat to challenge him, despite their lofty notoriety amongst the alphabet organizations.

• Ryder - many questioned what he had done to receive his rankings, and no one really believed he was going to win - and he didn't
• Charlo - this was intriguing and had the potential to be an excellent bout, but he didn't show up to fight, which was not Alvarez's fault
• Munguia - carefully matched up to that point, won his SWW title against a WW, and was - and still is - a WBC favorite; he later got KO'd by a light-hitting Frenchman and failed a drug test after edging the rematch
• Berlanga - many believed he was overhyped with a padded record and that it was just a matter of time until he was exposed, which Alvarez did and Sheeraz did even more emphatically
• Scull - won his SMW title with a hometown decision in a fight that most thought he lost; he was a light hitter who was reluctant to engage, and he had no notable wins on his record - and still doesn't
• Crawford - as I pointed out was a high-risk, little-reward fight for Alvarez, who wouldn't have gotten much credit if he had won and received an unjustified amount of scorn because he lost, despite Crawford's skill level and accomplishments
• Mbilli - Alvarez deserves praise and respect for agreeing to fight him on the heels of a loss and surgery; I agree that Mbilli is a top 3 SMW, and it's a bout I'm cautiously looking forward to

[Eolaithe]

I would hardly consider Scull, Berlanga, Munguia, and Ryder among the best boxers in the last decade - or any decade, for that matter - and they are four of his last six opponents. I'll give him props for taking on Crawford, which was a lose-lose proposition (no credit if he had beat the smaller man but a lot of criticism after he lost to him). In the other one of those most-recent six, the fight against the enigmatic Charlo could have been an excellent one, but only Alvarez, to his credit, showed up to fight while Charlo came for a payday.

Can you name ten fighters that consistently faced better opposition within the last ten years than the fighters that Canelo fought (i.e. like-for-like comparison of the opponents both men competed against since 2016)?

• Amir Khan (Former light-welterweight world champion; former Ring No. 1 at 140lbs)
• Liam Smith (Reigning WBO super-welterweight world champion; defending champion)
• Julio César Chávez Jr. (Former WBC middleweight world champion; former Ring-ranked middleweight)
• Gennadiy Golovkin (×3) (Unified/lineal middleweight champion; long-reigning defending champion; consensus pound-for-pound top-10 fighter, widely top-3 at the first two fights)
• Daniel Jacobs (IBF middleweight world champion; former WBA champion; Ring/ESPN top-3 middleweight)
• Sergey Kovalev (Reigning WBO light-heavyweight world champion; former unified champion; former Ring/ESPN No. 1 light-heavyweight)
• Callum Smith (Undefeated WBA (Super) and Ring super-middleweight champion; Ring/ESPN No. 1 at 168lbs)
• Avni Yıldırım (WBC mandatory challenger for the super-middleweight title)
• Billy Joe Saunders (Undefeated WBO super-middleweight and middleweight world champion; Ring top-3 at 168lbs)
• Caleb Plant (Undefeated IBF super-middleweight world champion; defending champion)
• Dmitry Bivol (Undefeated WBA light-heavyweight super champion; long-reigning defending champion; Ring/ESPN No. 1 light-heavyweight; pound-for-pound top-10)
• John Ryder (WBO interim world champion; WBO mandatory challenger; Ring top-10 super-middleweight)
• Jermell Charlo (Undisputed super-welterweight champion; reigning four-belt champion; pound-for-pound top-10)
• Jaime Munguía (Former WBO super-welterweight world champion; undefeated at the time; WBC mandatory challenger; Ring top-5 super-middleweight contender)
• Edgar Berlanga (Undefeated mandatory challenger; WBA No. 1/WBO top-ranked contender; Ring top-10 super-middleweight)
• William Scull (IBF super-middleweight world champion; undefeated reigning champion)
• Terence Crawford (Undefeated four-weight world champion; two-weight undisputed champion entering the bout; consensus pound-for-pound No. 1 or No. 2)
• Christian Mbilli (WBC 168lbs world champion; consensus top-3 super-middleweight)

Ten? There's probably not three fighters who have faced a comparable lineup over the past ten years. Usyk comes to mind, but I'm not sure there is anyone else.

Prior to the last three years or so, Alvarez fought a who's who of fighters from MW through LHW, letting some of those bouts marinate to his benefit. My point was that with few exceptions (Crawford and, to a lesser extent, Charlo) his last six opponents were carefully selected and posed little threat to challenge him, despite their lofty notoriety amongst the alphabet organizations.

• Ryder - many questioned what he had done to receive his rankings, and no one really believed he was going to win - and he didn't
• Charlo - this was intriguing and had the potential to be an excellent bout, but he didn't show up to fight, which was not Alvarez's fault
• Munguia - carefully matched up to that point, won his SWW title against a WW, and was - and still is - a WBC favorite; he later got KO'd by a light-hitting Frenchman and failed a drug test after edging the rematch
• Berlanga - many believed he was overhyped with a padded record and that it was just a matter of time until he was exposed, which Alvarez did and Sheeraz did even more emphatically
• Scull - won his SMW title with a hometown decision in a fight that most thought he lost; he was a light hitter who was reluctant to engage, and he had no notable wins on his record - and still doesn't
• Crawford - as I pointed out was a high-risk, little-reward fight for Alvarez, who wouldn't have gotten much credit if he had won and received an unjustified amount of scorn because he lost, despite Crawford's skill level and accomplishments
• Mbilli - Alvarez deserves praise and respect for agreeing to fight him on the heels of a loss and surgery; I agree that Mbilli is a top 3 SMW, and it's a bout I'm cautiously looking forward to

Ryder, Mungia and Berlanga were mandatory challengers when Canelo was the IBF, WBA, WBC & WBO undisputed champion at 168lbs.

Canelo was stripped of his IBF title (refusing to face Scull), due to fighting his WBA mandatory challenger (Berlanga) instead.

After Scull eventually captured the vacant IBF strap that Canelo was stripped of, the Mexican decided to reclaim this belt from the Cuban.

Those fights were made, because Canelo wanted to remain the undisputed super-middleweight champion of the world.

If Canelo's natural habitat is 168lbs, what would you have had him do instead? Vacate all of his titles?

[MPW]

Can you name ten fighters that consistently faced better opposition within the last ten years than the fighters that Canelo fought (i.e. like-for-like comparison of the opponents both men competed against since 2016)?

• Amir Khan (Former light-welterweight world champion; former Ring No. 1 at 140lbs)
• Liam Smith (Reigning WBO super-welterweight world champion; defending champion)
• Julio César Chávez Jr. (Former WBC middleweight world champion; former Ring-ranked middleweight)
• Gennadiy Golovkin (×3) (Unified/lineal middleweight champion; long-reigning defending champion; consensus pound-for-pound top-10 fighter, widely top-3 at the first two fights)
• Daniel Jacobs (IBF middleweight world champion; former WBA champion; Ring/ESPN top-3 middleweight)
• Sergey Kovalev (Reigning WBO light-heavyweight world champion; former unified champion; former Ring/ESPN No. 1 light-heavyweight)
• Callum Smith (Undefeated WBA (Super) and Ring super-middleweight champion; Ring/ESPN No. 1 at 168lbs)
• Avni Yıldırım (WBC mandatory challenger for the super-middleweight title)
• Billy Joe Saunders (Undefeated WBO super-middleweight and middleweight world champion; Ring top-3 at 168lbs)
• Caleb Plant (Undefeated IBF super-middleweight world champion; defending champion)
• Dmitry Bivol (Undefeated WBA light-heavyweight super champion; long-reigning defending champion; Ring/ESPN No. 1 light-heavyweight; pound-for-pound top-10)
• John Ryder (WBO interim world champion; WBO mandatory challenger; Ring top-10 super-middleweight)
• Jermell Charlo (Undisputed super-welterweight champion; reigning four-belt champion; pound-for-pound top-10)
• Jaime Munguía (Former WBO super-welterweight world champion; undefeated at the time; WBC mandatory challenger; Ring top-5 super-middleweight contender)
• Edgar Berlanga (Undefeated mandatory challenger; WBA No. 1/WBO top-ranked contender; Ring top-10 super-middleweight)
• William Scull (IBF super-middleweight world champion; undefeated reigning champion)
• Terence Crawford (Undefeated four-weight world champion; two-weight undisputed champion entering the bout; consensus pound-for-pound No. 1 or No. 2)
• Christian Mbilli (WBC 168lbs world champion; consensus top-3 super-middleweight)

Ten? There's probably not three fighters who have faced a comparable lineup over the past ten years. Usyk comes to mind, but I'm not sure there is anyone else.

Prior to the last three years or so, Alvarez fought a who's who of fighters from MW through LHW, letting some of those bouts marinate to his benefit. My point was that with few exceptions (Crawford and, to a lesser extent, Charlo) his last six opponents were carefully selected and posed little threat to challenge him, despite their lofty notoriety amongst the alphabet organizations.

• Ryder - many questioned what he had done to receive his rankings, and no one really believed he was going to win - and he didn't
• Charlo - this was intriguing and had the potential to be an excellent bout, but he didn't show up to fight, which was not Alvarez's fault
• Munguia - carefully matched up to that point, won his SWW title against a WW, and was - and still is - a WBC favorite; he later got KO'd by a light-hitting Frenchman and failed a drug test after edging the rematch
• Berlanga - many believed he was overhyped with a padded record and that it was just a matter of time until he was exposed, which Alvarez did and Sheeraz did even more emphatically
• Scull - won his SMW title with a hometown decision in a fight that most thought he lost; he was a light hitter who was reluctant to engage, and he had no notable wins on his record - and still doesn't
• Crawford - as I pointed out was a high-risk, little-reward fight for Alvarez, who wouldn't have gotten much credit if he had won and received an unjustified amount of scorn because he lost, despite Crawford's skill level and accomplishments
• Mbilli - Alvarez deserves praise and respect for agreeing to fight him on the heels of a loss and surgery; I agree that Mbilli is a top 3 SMW, and it's a bout I'm cautiously looking forward to

Ryder, Mungia and Berlanga were mandatory challengers when Canelo was the IBF, WBA, WBC & WBO undisputed champion at 168lbs.

Canelo was stripped of his IBF title (refusing to face Scull), due to fighting his WBA mandatory challenger (Berlanga) instead.

After Scull eventually captured the vacant IBF strap that Canelo was stripped of, the Mexican decided to reclaim this belt from the Cuban.

Those fights were made, because Canelo wanted to remain the undisputed super-middleweight champion of the world.

If Canelo's natural habitat is 168lbs, what would you have had him do instead? Vacate all of his titles?

Perhaps its more the folly of the alphabet orgs pushing unworthy - in my opinion, anyway - mandatories to face the undisputed champion. Let's be honest, Alvarez was - and may still be - the face of boxing and held a lot of sway over whom he fought, and I suspect most of the organizations (except the IBF, obviously) were happy to subtly acquiesce to his choices as long as they received the sanctioning fees from those massive paydays. Maybe I'm too cynical, but I also believe that if Alvarez didn't want to fight any of those mandatories, a new one would have appeared in the rankings. We've all seen a "final" eliminator lead into another "final" eliminator that results in yet another "final" eliminator.

[Eolaithe]

Ten? There's probably not three fighters who have faced a comparable lineup over the past ten years. Usyk comes to mind, but I'm not sure there is anyone else.

Prior to the last three years or so, Alvarez fought a who's who of fighters from MW through LHW, letting some of those bouts marinate to his benefit. My point was that with few exceptions (Crawford and, to a lesser extent, Charlo) his last six opponents were carefully selected and posed little threat to challenge him, despite their lofty notoriety amongst the alphabet organizations.

• Ryder - many questioned what he had done to receive his rankings, and no one really believed he was going to win - and he didn't
• Charlo - this was intriguing and had the potential to be an excellent bout, but he didn't show up to fight, which was not Alvarez's fault
• Munguia - carefully matched up to that point, won his SWW title against a WW, and was - and still is - a WBC favorite; he later got KO'd by a light-hitting Frenchman and failed a drug test after edging the rematch
• Berlanga - many believed he was overhyped with a padded record and that it was just a matter of time until he was exposed, which Alvarez did and Sheeraz did even more emphatically
• Scull - won his SMW title with a hometown decision in a fight that most thought he lost; he was a light hitter who was reluctant to engage, and he had no notable wins on his record - and still doesn't
• Crawford - as I pointed out was a high-risk, little-reward fight for Alvarez, who wouldn't have gotten much credit if he had won and received an unjustified amount of scorn because he lost, despite Crawford's skill level and accomplishments
• Mbilli - Alvarez deserves praise and respect for agreeing to fight him on the heels of a loss and surgery; I agree that Mbilli is a top 3 SMW, and it's a bout I'm cautiously looking forward to

Ryder, Mungia and Berlanga were mandatory challengers when Canelo was the IBF, WBA, WBC & WBO undisputed champion at 168lbs.

Canelo was stripped of his IBF title (refusing to face Scull), due to fighting his WBA mandatory challenger (Berlanga) instead.

After Scull eventually captured the vacant IBF strap that Canelo was stripped of, the Mexican decided to reclaim this belt from the Cuban.

Those fights were made, because Canelo wanted to remain the undisputed super-middleweight champion of the world.

If Canelo's natural habitat is 168lbs, what would you have had him do instead? Vacate all of his titles?

Perhaps its more the folly of the alphabet orgs pushing unworthy - in my opinion, anyway - mandatories to face the undisputed champion. Let's be honest, Alvarez was - and may still be - the face of boxing and held a lot of sway over whom he fought, and I suspect most of the organizations (except the IBF, obviously) were happy to subtly acquiesce to his choices as long as they received the sanctioning fees from those massive paydays. Maybe I'm too cynical, but I also believe that if Alvarez didn't want to fight any of those mandatories, a new one would have appeared in the rankings. We've all seen a "final" eliminator lead into another "final" eliminator that results in yet another "final" eliminator.

To be fair, GGG had to face several weak mandatory challengers, including Dominic Wade, Vanes Martirosyan and Kamil Szeremeta. The IBF also tried to get him to fight Esquiva Falcão.

Many long-reigning champions can be criticised for having competed in weak title defences, when faced with an ultimatum to either fight a poor mandatory challenger or risk losing a belt.

The real problem is that boxing’s governing bodies sometimes force champions to defend their titles against undeserving opponents.

[MPW]

Ryder, Mungia and Berlanga were mandatory challengers when Canelo was the IBF, WBA, WBC & WBO undisputed champion at 168lbs.

Canelo was stripped of his IBF title (refusing to face Scull), due to fighting his WBA mandatory challenger (Berlanga) instead.

After Scull eventually captured the vacant IBF strap that Canelo was stripped of, the Mexican decided to reclaim this belt from the Cuban.

Those fights were made, because Canelo wanted to remain the undisputed super-middleweight champion of the world.

If Canelo's natural habitat is 168lbs, what would you have had him do instead? Vacate all of his titles?

Perhaps its more the folly of the alphabet orgs pushing unworthy - in my opinion, anyway - mandatories to face the undisputed champion. Let's be honest, Alvarez was - and may still be - the face of boxing and held a lot of sway over whom he fought, and I suspect most of the organizations (except the IBF, obviously) were happy to subtly acquiesce to his choices as long as they received the sanctioning fees from those massive paydays. Maybe I'm too cynical, but I also believe that if Alvarez didn't want to fight any of those mandatories, a new one would have appeared in the rankings. We've all seen a "final" eliminator lead into another "final" eliminator that results in yet another "final" eliminator.

To be fair, GGG had to face several weak mandatory challengers, including Dominic Wade, Vanes Martirosyan and Kamil Szeremeta. The IBF also tried to get him to fight Esquiva Falcão.

Many long-reigning champions can be criticised for having competed in weak title defences, when faced with an ultimatum to either fight a poor mandatory challenger or risk losing a belt.

The real problem is that boxing’s governing bodies sometimes force champions to defend their titles against undeserving opponents.

I agree whole heartedly with all three of your points. And to me, the biggest issue with boxing is the last one, where a champion must defend against undeserving mandatory or lose his title.

[Ruthless-RKO]

Perhaps its more the folly of the alphabet orgs pushing unworthy - in my opinion, anyway - mandatories to face the undisputed champion. Let's be honest, Alvarez was - and may still be - the face of boxing and held a lot of sway over whom he fought, and I suspect most of the organizations (except the IBF, obviously) were happy to subtly acquiesce to his choices as long as they received the sanctioning fees from those massive paydays. Maybe I'm too cynical, but I also believe that if Alvarez didn't want to fight any of those mandatories, a new one would have appeared in the rankings. We've all seen a "final" eliminator lead into another "final" eliminator that results in yet another "final" eliminator.

To be fair, GGG had to face several weak mandatory challengers, including Dominic Wade, Vanes Martirosyan and Kamil Szeremeta. The IBF also tried to get him to fight Esquiva Falcão.

Many long-reigning champions can be criticised for having competed in weak title defences, when faced with an ultimatum to either fight a poor mandatory challenger or risk losing a belt.

The real problem is that boxing’s governing bodies sometimes force champions to defend their titles against undeserving opponents.

I agree whole heartedly with all three of your points. And to me, the biggest issue with boxing is the last one, where a champion must defend against undeserving mandatory or lose his title.

I always remember Kell Brook's mandatories.

JoJo Dan and Kevin Bizier.. like who??? Dan became mandatory after beating Bizier.. Bizier then had a non-147 fight, then beat Fredrick Lawson to become mandatory

i know he tried to make the unification with Jesse Vargas, but Brexit messed that up. and he had that other cancelled defence against Diego Chaves, after not being able to get a fight with Brandon Rios. So all these voluntary defences fall through, and then a mandatory is ordered.

[Ruthless-RKO]

Boxer Canelo Álvarez reflects on when he'll retire: "I have other things to accomplish outside of boxing"

Boxer Saúl "Canelo" Álvarez, the first undisputed super middleweight champion, is one of the biggest stars the sport has ever produced.

He won his first world title at just 20 years old. Now 36, the Mexico native told "CBS Mornings" in an exclusive interview how he'll know it's time to walk away from the sport.

"When I'm there in the gym and I take a lot of punches and then my body doesn't respond in the same way, then I know. I'm not going to go and fight with that kind of training," he said. "Because in the training, you can see everything in the training camp."

The boxing icon, who has more than 60 wins and world titles across four weight divisions, said while he feels "good," he added there's "not much left" for him to do.

"I have other things to accomplish outside of boxing," Álvarez said.

You can watch more of Canelo Álvarez's interview on Friday on "CBS Mornings."

[Ruthless-RKO]

'Not much left for me': Canelo hints retirement is near​

Canelo Alvarez has maintained that he has no more than a handful of fights left in his illustrious career.

The next one is scheduled for October 31 in Saudi Arabia, as he aims to become a three-time super middleweight champion when he faces the WBC titleholder Mbilli (29-0-1, 24 KOs).

Alvarez (63-3-2, 39 KOs) has been fighting as a professional since the age of 15. The former four-division champion is now 36 and heading into the 69th fight of his 21-year career.

After competing in 532 rounds against the best fighters of his generation, Alvarez admits that the sand in the hourglass of his Hall of Fame-bound career is expiring.

"My body is going to tell me [when to retire]," Alvarez told CBS. "When I'm in the gym, and if I take a lot of punches and my body doesn't respond in the same way, then I know. I'm not going to fight with that kind of training. You can see and feel everything in training camp. You feel how your body responds, or not.

"But there's not much left for me, too. For me, I have other things to accomplish outside of boxing."

Alvarez finds himself in unfamiliar territory for the first time in a long time after losing to Terence Crawford in September.

In November of last year, Alvarez exited The Ring's pound-for-pound list for performance-related issues after more than a decade among the cream of the crop. He's also currently navigating his career without a championship belt. He has held one major title or another since 2011, outside of brief stretches here and there.

With the changing times, Alvarez, who has trained in the high-altitude terrain near Lake Tahoe, California, over the last three years and is coming off elbow surgery, also realizes he needs to make changes to his training as the matchup against Mbilli inches closer.

"I used to be trained in a rustic way. I grew up with that," he said. "Right now, science is different, and I am adapting myself to that. It's smarter. Before, we used to run a lot. And your body gets tired at some point. But right now, I am adjusting myself to the modern day.

"I pretty much accomplished everything. If you look back, every time I fight, I break records, and that's my motivation – legacy. I'm fighting because I love boxing. I'm fighting to represent my country of Mexico."

[Ruthless-RKO]

'Christian Mbilli might do us all a favor and beat Canelo,' says Paulie Malignaggi

The hosts of Boxing Scene Today (Join now for $5 a month), Chris Algieri, Robert Garcia and Paulie Maglinaggi, didn’t hold back on their opinions on the upcoming Canelo Alvarez-Christian Mbilli showdown, saying that Mbilli could be Alvarez’s worst nightmare stylistically.

Mbilli, 29-0-1 (24 KOs), from Quebec, Canada, via Cameroon, will make the first defense of his WBC super middleweight championship against Mexican superstar Alvarez, 66-3-2 (39 KOs), on Halloween night, Saturday, October 31, in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, and live on DAZN PPV.


“Mbilli might do us all a favor and win,” said the outspoken Malignaggi. “I’m not going to speak for everybody but do me a favor and we don't have a logjam again.”

31-year-old “Solide” Mbilli fought to a hotly contested draw against current WBC Interim super middleweight champion Lester Martinez in a fight many thought Martinez could have won in September of last year.

“Mbilli doesn't have the power with the politics,” Malignaggi explains. “If Mbilli's got a mandatory, the WBC will enforce the (Lester) Martinez rematch.

“I think is a tough fight for Canelo honestly. Especially at this stage in his career, because this guy's (Mbilli) got a really big engine. Mbilli is the kind of guy when you're older, he's a miserable opponent. Canelo is older. You don't want to fight at that pace when you're older. lWhen you're younger, it's an uncomfortable pace, but you'll deal with it.. But when you're older, you don't want to deal with that pace. I could also see that Mbilli would give Canelo a rematch if he wins and Canelo be like, ‘man, I'm good.’ I think the pace might be just too uncomfortable.”

“All this is going to depend on how the fight goes,” adds Algieri. “If it's a really close fight and Canelo feels like he still wants to get back in there, I could see him do it. Or I can see, like you said, if he loses and he just gets run over, I could see him just being like that.”

The question then turns to whether Canelo still has the skills to slow down a force of nature like Mbilli and make it a more winnable fight for himself.

“I think that's possible,” answers Robert Garcia. “Canelo knows he needs a win. He needs this win to get back on top and become champion again. I am pretty sure he's going to be in great shape. I think their game plan is going to be to work a lot of body shots. I think we're going to see a lot of body shots. If it starts off early in the fight towards the end, I think Mbilli will slow down a lot. Body shots will be a main factor in this fight.”