By Jack Tiernan: Canelo Alvarez looked surprisingly non-bulky in coming in at 174.6 pounds at Friday’s weigh-in for his title challenge of WBA light heavyweight champion Dmitry Bivol on Saturday night at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada.
Bivol (19-0, 11 KOs) looked in great shape today, and he means business. It was surprising how calm Bivol was at the weigh-in today when Canelo’s fans began booing him.
Bivol just seemed happy to be a part of such a huge fight and didn’t care that he was being booed when it was his turn to speak.
There’s a lot on the line for the 31-year-old Canelo, as if he loses this fight against Bivol, he can forget about fighting Gennadiy Golovkin in September.
Also, it might impact who Canelo faces in December and his designs to fight for the undisputed match at 175.
The boxing fans remember how bulked out Canelo (57-1-2, 39 KOs) was for his two fights with Golovkin, and his title shot against WBO light heavyweight champion Sergey Kovalev was a shock that he wasn’t equally as bulked out today.
Canelo is concerned with the mobility of Bivol (19-0, 11 KOs) and the pace of the fight. If this were going to be one of Canelo’s standard opponents that would stand directly in front of him all night, he’d likely be as bulked out as before.
If Canelo gets past Bivol, we’ll likely see him pack on the muscles again for his trilogy match against Golovkin in September and his undisputed clash against the winner of the Artur Beterbiev vs. Joe Smith Jr. fight in early next year.
Weights:
Montana Love 140 vs. Gabriel Gollaz 138.6
Shakhram Giyasov 146.6 vs. Christian Gomez 146
Marc Castro 134.8 vs. Pedro Vicente 134.8
Zhilei Zhang 276.2 vs. Scott Alexander 222.6
Joselito Velazquez 112.4 vs. Jose Soto 113.8
Alexis Espino 163.6 vs. Aaron Silva 164.4
Elnur Abduraimov 129.6 vs. Manuel Correa 128.6
Fernando Molina 139.6 vs. Ricardo Valdovinos 139.4
“I would never bet against Canelo Alvarez, but Dmitry Bivol has been so calm all week, even today. I give him every chance in this fight, but he’s fighting arguably the greatest fighter of all time,” said Eddie Hearn to Fight Hub TV.
“Size, great feet, good power, good engine, fresh, speed, freshness, great boxing IQ,” said Hearn when asked what Bivol brings to the table for this fight with Canelo.
“He’s been in with some big punchers in Joe Smith, Jean Pascal. Is Canelo a massive puncher at 175? We’ll find out tomorrow night.
“They all should be great fights. Billy Joe Saunders, Caleb Plant, Callum Smith, but he’s just been good all the time. Daniel Jacobs, Sergey Kovalev, they’ve all been great fights, but he’s been too good.
“This is going to be another great fight, and we’re going to find out if he’s too good again,” Hearn said of Canelo. “He’ll be watching at home,” said Hearn about Gennadiy Golovkin.
“He feels like he doesn’t want to disrespect Dmitry Bivol by being here, turning up, and all that kind of stuff. He’ll be tuned in for sure. He was going to come here on Wednesday and do some bits and pieces but chose not to.
“I think he wants to see what happens in the fight, and then you’ll hear from him.
“I would be shocked if it didn’t go past halfway; I would be shocked because Dmitry is very clever, very cute, and very smart. I think it’s definitely going to go past the halfway stage.
“It’s always good to represent both sides. You give them the opportunity to secure their legacy. For Bivol, that’s what this is about.
“For Canelo, it’s about continuing his legacy. I said earlier that he has to handicap himself to be in tough fights. He has no business being at 175 pounds. He didn’t have to make weight.
“He probably had to drink himself up to 174. He’ll get in the ring at 176, 177, or 180 tops. Bivol will get in the ring at 195 or 190. So he has to handicap himself to be in competitive fights, and that’s what he’s doing,” Hearn said about Canelo.
