Four-belt undisputed super middleweight champion Canelo Alvarez prides himself in facing the best opposition possible opposition.
Rather than seeing the pound-for-pound star Canelo facing lackluster opposition like Jaime Munguia & Jermall Charlo, fans would prefer that he run the gauntlet by facing these four killers in the following order:
– Artur Beterbiev
– David Benavidez
– Dmitry Bivol
The question is if Canelo (60-2-2, 39 KOs) did fight the gang of three, how many of them would he beat, if any? Could the 33-year-old Canelo defeat any of the three talents, or would he lose badly to all of them and be reduced to the level of a supernova?
This writer can’t picture Canelo defeating Beterbiev, Bivol, or Benavidez because those guys have styles that are all wrong for the Mexican star. In the case of Beterbiev, he is so strong that he would set up shop on the inside and batter Canelo to the ground repeatedly.
Artur Beterbiev: The Lethal Destroyer
- The inside fighting ability of the unbeaten IBF, WBC & WBO light heavyweight champion Beterbiev (20-0, 20 KOs) would potentially be disastrous for Canelo, who would be foolish enough to try and battle him at close range.
- Speed: Canelo would still hold the hand speed advantage, but that probably wouldn’t help him against Beterbiev, with his excellent timing. Whatever countershot that Canelo landed, Beterbiev would fire back with four or five and make him miserable.
- Combination punching: This used to be an area that Canelo was strong in, but as he’s gotten older, he’s morphed into a single-punch fighter who loads up with everything he throws.
Dmitry Bivol: Rematch
- Combination punching: As we saw in Bivol’s one-sided win over Canelo in 2022, his combination punching was a nightmare for him. With each shot that Canelo would land, Bivol was fired back three to four of his own, overwhelming his defense.
- Mobility: Bivol’s movement in a rematch with Canelo would cause him problems like it did in their previous fight.
- Stamina: Canelo gassed out after three rounds last time and surprisingly blamed it on a hand injury. I don’t understand that excuse, but that’s the one that he came up with.
David Benavidez: Volume puncher
- Volume punching: Benavidez’s high-volume punching style would be an issue for Canelo because he would need to move or go for a quick knockout. That’s not happening against the cruiserweight-sized Benavidez because he will likely be heavy and absorb Canelo’s shots like a sponge.
- Speed: Benavidez has a similar hand seed to Canelo, which will be problematic for him.
- Punch resistance: Canelo could hurt Benavidez if he gets too greedy with his combination punching because he goes overboard and forgets his defense.