By Idris Morrey: The recent fight between Saul “Canelo” Alvarez (44-1-1, 31 KOs) and Erislandy Lara (19-2-2, 12 KOs) has sparked debates not only on the controversy surrounding the judging but also on fighting styles last night at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas, Nevada.
Canelo stated clearly that he did not come to compete in a marathon and he expected his opponent to stand toe-to-toe for the bout. Alvarez seem to have learned little from the Floyd Mayweather Jr schooling as his dismal display showed he had problems finding Lara last night.
From the compubox which gives official statistics, Canelo had thrown more punches than Lara but the latter connected more than Canelo. Which brings the concern on where did Lara run to. How and when was he connecting his punches on move? Canelo couldn’t see shots coming and when he tried to throw his own, Lara used his quickness to make Alvarez miss badly.
Another lesson there for Canelo who escaped with the victory is that there is a reason why the ring has ropes around it, the officials also decided that the ring should have such room for a fighter to do anything legal within it, footwork and as many adjustments as one can.
The goal is to win and Lara tried as much and was successful all along. For Canelo, the ring is all Lara had to move about and around. Boxers are in the category of Athletes not robots so running is part of it. One cannot stand there to get whooped and end up losing their head and points.
Canelo cannot move well around the ring. That’s a weakness that Floyd and Lara seem to have used to their advantage and the result for Floyd was a clear dominance and a win while Lara had control but denied well deserved win supported statistically.
Oscar Dela Hoya seems to move from being a Boxing Legend to a disgrace. How could he at first want to deny Lara this fight and then state in the post fight conference that he has listened to everybody and there is no thought of a potential rematch. He was aware of the danger Erislandy Lara poses to his Golden Boy Promotions’ assets. Having Canelo defeated once again could be closure of business for him. Another game plan for Dela Hoya that hurts the sport of boxing.
I feel sorry for Canelo. The only boxer who will stand statue in-front of him is one and only” his Everlast punching bag”.
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