BoxRec

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.

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.

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.