With Canelo Alvarez’s undisputed super middleweight title on the line, the Mexican star will be fighting more than Terence Crawford on Saturday, Sept. 13 in Las Vegas.
He’ll also be fighting for his legacy.
Aris Pina, a voter for the International Boxing Hall of Famer, said he thinks Alvarez ranks among the Top 30 boxers all-time. Barry Tompkins, a highly regarded boxing analyst, said he thinks Alvarez is in contention for the mythical crown of best Mexican boxer ever.
The prevailing sentiment: Alvarez’s legacy hinges in part on the outcome of his fight against Crawford, who like Alvarez, has spent time atop the pound-for-pound rankings. Alvarez is 63-2-2 with 39 knockouts.
“His record speaks for itself,’’ Tompkins said. “And to his credit, he’s fought everyone who’s come along.’’
But he has not fought Crawford, who is 41-0 with 31 knockouts and, like Alvarez, a shoo-in as a Hall-of-Fame inductee. With Crawford jumping two weight classes, to 168 pounds from 154 pounds, a victory would damage Alvarez’s legacy, which needs cementing.
Julio Cesar Chavez Sr., who was widely regarded as the best pound-for-pound boxer in the early 1990s and finished his career with a record of 107-6-2 with 85 KOs, has long been considered the best Mexican fighter ever. Tompkins said Alvarez belongs in the conversation.
“Definitely in the conversation,’’ Tompkins told USA TODAY Sports.
Pina said he thinks there’s more work to do.
“If he beats Crawford and he beats him convincingly and goes on to beat (David Benavidez) or something like that, I could easily see him if someone were to say, ‘OK, he’s the No. 1 greatest Mexican fighter ever,’ ” Pina told USA TODAY Sports. “I probably wouldn’t even really argue.’ ”
Learning in the ring
In Mexico, with the option to turn pro as early as 15, Alvarez did just that. He won 11 of his first 13 fights by knockout and began to develop a reputation as a tough fighter with a rock solid chin and impressive defense.
He will carry those attributes into the 68th fight of his pro career.
“Through all the styles that he’s had to fight coming up to become the most well-rounded fighter you’ve seen, many have seen in years,’’ Pina said.
At 23, Alvarez stepped in the ring with Floyd Mayweather Jr., who was then 36 and considerably more experienced. Mayweather won by majority decision and handed Alvarez the first loss of his career.
He won his next 16 fights and went more than eight years without another loss.
“What we’ve learned from that is that he was able to bounce back,’’ Pina said. “Floyd dominated more or less, but Alvarez had his moments and it gave people hope that, ‘Hey, maybe he can learn from this.’ He absolutely did. He became a more complete fighter.
“And each fight it got gradual even more. You could see that.’’
In 2017, Gennadiy Golovkin had emerged as one of the hardest punchers in boxing. Top fighters steered clear.
Not Alvarez.
So began their trilogy.
It started with a draw in which Golovkin appeared to win, but Alvarez atoned in their second fight with a victory by split decision. He won their third fight by unanimous decision.
“He was much better in the rematch than he was the first fight, which clearly shows he learned what some of Golovkin tendencies,’’ Pina said.
Now 35, Alvarez still is a hybrid of brains and brawn. He suffered his second career loss in 2022, when he moved up to the 175-pound light heavyweight division and lost to Dmitry Bivol by unanimous decision.
Since then, he has won six fights in a row, without a knockout or a close call.
“He’s a pro,’’ Tompkins said, “and he does what he needs to do to win the fight.’’
On Saturday, Alvarez will be looking to win for the 64th time of his career and potentially a legacy-cementing victory.