Canelo Alvarez vs. Billy Joe Saunders agreed for May on Dazn

By Boxing News - 01/28/2021 - Comments

By Max Seitelman: Canelo Alvarez and Billy Joe Saunders will be fighting this May in a unification fight at 168 after agreeing to a deal on Thursday. The date for their fight will be either May 1st or May 8th, according to Mike Coppinger.

Canelo (54-1-2, 36 KOs) still needs to successfully defend his WBA/WBC super-middleweight titles against Avni Yildirim (21-2, 12 KOs) on February 27th in Miami, Florida.

Alvarez must not only win that fight against the hard-hitting Turkish fighter, but he’s got to get through it injury-free. If Canelo suffers a cut, even a small one, it’s going to make it necessary for him to postpone the Saunders match.

Against anyone, there will be a risk for Canelo to get through the fight withing injury, but against a big puncher Yildirim, who will have upset on his mind, it’s going to be doubly hard.

That’s a fight that the 30-year-old Canelo is heavily favored, but you can’t rule out an upset if Yildirim lands one of his big shots.

Image: Canelo Alvarez vs. Billy Joe Saunders agreed for May on Dazn

Saunders awaits Canelo in May

WBO super middleweight champion Saunders has been waiting for his opportunity to face Canelo for many years now, and he’s finally about to get it. The only thing that can stop Saunders from facing Canelo in May is Avni Yildirim.

It will be cruel fate if Yildirim foils Saunders’ dream fight by beating or injuring Canelo next month. Saunders would have to wait a little bit longer for his fight with Canelo, and that would put him at risk.

Saunders would be expected to stay busy by fighting Demetrius Andrade, and that’s no walk in the park for him. Many boxing fans believe that Andrade will beat Saunder if given a chance and do it quite easily.

This is a fight that Canelo needs to get out of the way against Billy Joe for him to continue moving forward towards his goal of becoming the undisputed champion at 168.

There’s no demand from U.S fans to see Canelo face the unbeaten Saunders. American fans want to see Canelo fight David Benavidez, Edgar Berlanga, Demetrius Andrade. and Jermall Charlo.

“SOURCES: Canelo Alvarez and Billy Joe Saunders have agreed to a deal for a May fight on DAZN. Three 168-pound titles up for grabs. Fight will land in U.S., on May 1 or May 8. First, Canelo will have to beat Avni Yildirim on Feb. 27 and emerge uninjured,” said @Mike Coppinger.

Image: Canelo Alvarez vs. Billy Joe Saunders agreed for May on Dazn

Billy Joe = Bad style match-up for Canelo

The slick fighting style that the southpaw Saunders uses could prove to be the kryptonite to the Superman-like Canelo, and that’s something that most boxing fans are overlooking.

Styles make fights, and the slick way that Saunders fights will take away Canelo’s counter-punching style of fighting and put him in a situation where he’ll need to win rounds based on a low connect rate and punch output.

If Saunders comes into the contest in shape, he could prove to be a difficult adversary for Canelo.

Billy Joe’s best wins:

  • Chris Eubank Jr
  • John Ryder
  • Willie Monroe Jr
  • David Lemieux
  • Artur Akavov
  • Andy Lee
  • Gary ‘Spike’ O’Sullivan

Billy Joe has some excellent wins during his career, but he’s not faced anyone good enough t really impress the boxing public.

He did beat Eubank Jr, but that was against a raw fighter that hadn’t been developed. Eubank Jr is a better fighter today than he was back then.

It’s unclear what state the Canelo vs. Saunders fight will be staged, but it’s safe to say that it’ll take place in a location that will put Alvarez in a strong position to win on the cards.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FptdFBygWUE&t=50s

Saunders lacks the popularity to fight with Alvarez fight staged in the UK. That’s where he needs the match to be staged for him to have a better chance of winning on the scorecards.