CANELO PREVAILS IN VEGAS

Canelo Alvarez was supposed to be fading, and fight number 64 was to be the verification. Injuries, declining performances, and a shock defeat, boxing had all the proof it needed. 

Yet under the Las Vegas lights, it was Jermell Charlo who felt the punishing wrath of an insistent Canelo. 

It seemed like a moment the Mexican needed too, as he reiterated his love for the sport and his desire to continue as boxing’s protagonist. This may well be his career second wind. 

‘I’m a strong fighter all the time. Nobody can beat this Canelo. I still love boxing. I love boxing so much. Boxing is my life.’ 

The intent was clear from minute one as Alvarez stalked a receding Charlo around the ring. If there were no ropes, Charlo could well have backed his way onto the Vegas strip. 

Canelo hammered in some typical body work to assert his dominance, and by the time the fight reached the halfway stage, Charlo looked as if he wanted no part of proceedings. 

He feared the Canelo counter, unwilling to let his hands go, with his speed advantage used solely as a defence mechanism. He looked terrified. 

Canelo continued to walk his opponent down and, in the sixth, with Charlo unable to free himself from the ropes, Canelo teed off. One of those punches landed flush on Charlo’s jaw. 

This was boxing torment. 

Then came the seventh, and the fight’s photo moment. Canelo launched a right hand that snapped back the head of Charlo. It was fight or flight… or flounder. 

Charlo, perhaps sensibly, took a knee. 

He rose, and seemed stable for it. Canelo could sense the finish, but Charlo’s survival skills saw him through to round eight.  

To Charlo’s credit, albeit overdue, he let his hands get to work, likely realising it was his only way to make any inroad in this otherwise one-sided beatdown. 

A neat combination landed head and body on Canelo. The champion still marched forward, clearly unfazed by any Charlo power. Charlo landed a quick one-two as the round finished. 

Finally, a clear round on the board for the Iron Man. 

Charlo popped out the jab in the ninth and, evidently buoyed by his work in the previous round, begin to let his hands fly. A big looping right caught Canelo clean on the temple. 

It was very valiant, but a case of too little, too late for the challenger. 

Charlo’s corner emphasized the need to give more, but Canelo continued to walk his man down in the final rounds, incapacitating any threat his opponent did have. 

Scorecards of 118-109 x2 and 119-108 laid truth to the dominance of the Mexican. There was no big finish, but this had touches of vintage Canelo. 

As for Charlo, I’m sure there is a willingness to fall back down to 154 and keep himself as far away from Canelo as physically possible. This really wasn’t his best of nights. 

Anyway, let’s all start talking about the possibility of Canelo and Terence Crawford, shall we?

Let’s also briefly talk about Jai Opetaia, who looked powerful, nasty, and unforgiving against an out-of-his-depth Jordan Thompson at Wembley Arena. 

For the four rounds it lasted, Opetaia aggressively hunted Thompson. There was no skylarking, or overthinking, or hesitating. This was a search and destroy job. 

Every shot he threw had mean intent, with his crunching left down the pipe proving to be the eye catching, and eye breaking shot. 

Opetaia was even willing to trade with Thompson - a notoriously big puncher - in order to get his own work away. It was clinical, vicious, and relentless. 

Now I can see why two mandatories opted out previously.

What a statement. 

Oscar Bevis