What happens when two of the best pound-for-pound champions like Canelo Alvarez and Terence Crawford meet at the center of the ring? According to undisputed light heavyweight champion Dmitry Bivol, something spectacular. However, that’s not the highlight of this story! What really stood apart was Bivol’s prediction for the bout.
As the entire world knows by now, ‘Cinnamon’ and ‘The Mexican Monster’ are pegged to go toe-to-toe against each other in September later this year at the Allegiant Stadium in Las Vegas. Technically, Alvarez has to overcome IBF super middleweight champion William Scull first. But the Cuban boxer is being looked at as a mere easy obstacle to making the division whole again.
Despite the excitement surrounding the September fight, some in the community have crowned Alvarez the champion prematurely. This is mainly because of Canelo’s size advantage, which people believe also gives him a power advantage. And the concept is not that hard to digest, given Crawford is not used to fighting in the higher weight classes.
Yes, he has titles in four divisions and was also the undisputed champion in two of them. But this doesn’t necessarily mean his dominance would cross borders and invade the super middleweight division. And Bivol felt the same way before he saw Crawford about two months ago. “My first reaction, of course, was about the size of Crawford,” Bivol told The Ring in an interview.
“Is it okay for him to move up two weight classes or not? But then I saw him in Dubai maybe a month ago. I thought, ‘He’s big.’ He has very good skills,” he continued. Explaining that Crawford is one of his favorite fighters, Bivol claimed, “He’s able to win this fight. But there are a lot of small things which we don’t know.”
August 2, 2024, Los Angeles, California, USA: Former three weight world champion and pound for pound stalwart Terence ÃâËBudÃââ Crawford 40-0 steps on the scale to weigh in for his bout with WBA Super welterweight champion Israil Madrimov Los Angeles USA – ZUMAd151 20240802_znp_d151_024 Copyright: xAdamxDelGiudicex
What are those small things? “We don’t know how he will deal with it. He needs to get used to the power and pressure of 168 because it’s a big difference, to be honest,” Bivol explained. “Maybe he will get used to it and how he’ll be feeling. But he’s able. He has good skills. He’s awkward and can use both hands. It gives him benefits.”
However, he later added that winning the Canelo fight wouldn’t just require getting used to 168 pounds—Crawford would also have to be “mentally ready.” Bivol harped on the fact that Crawford’s mental preparation is as important as his physical readiness, stating, “If he’s mentally ready he will be OK with the punches … Alvarez has good defense. It’s one of his good sides. He uses his body a lot.”
While Bivol is literally laying out a guide for Crawford to beat Canelo, ‘Bud’ seems to be on a mission to invigorate Canelo following a series of slow performances.
Terence Crawford thinks he can force Canelo Alvarez to go all out
Terence Crawford believes he’s the perfect fighter to reignite Canelo Alvarez’s aggressive side. While Alvarez has continued to dominate his opponents, he hasn’t scored a stoppage victory in his last five fights, settling for unanimous decisions against Gennadiy Golovkin, John Ryder, Jermell Charlo, Jaime Munguia, and Edgar Berlanga.
Crawford feels he can push Canelo to his best. “Canelo has been holding back a lot in his last few fights,” Crawford told The Ring. “I don’t think Canelo has really been as excited to get up for those fights. I think he held Munguia up… With Berlanga, it was what it was… With Charlo, Charlo was moving a lot. Canelo won every round.”
Crawford then added, “He didn’t really feel the need to go in there and just maul him down. With me, he’s going to be the best Canelo that we have seen yet.”
Having said that, as per Dmitry Bivol, Terence Crawford has a good shot at beating Canelo Alvarez if ‘Bud’ gets used to fighting at 168 pounds and is mentally ready for it. However, the question is, can Crawford do what Bivol says? Or will Canelo’s power ultimately prove superior?
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