Last weekend saw what was undoubtedly the biggest boxing fight of the year. It pitted undefeated, multiple-weight undisputed champion Terrence Crawford against Mexican legend and defending undisputed Super Middleweight champion Saul Canelo Alvarez. Even to casuals, the absurd list of accomplishments I just had to list would be more than enough to whet the appetite.
The intrigue was heightened by the interesting weight considerations. Crawford was moving up in weight to face Canelo, who has even competed at Light Heavyweight, leading many to wonder whether Canelo’s physicality would overpower the smaller man.
However, Crawford quickly put those doubts to rest as he was able, during some tight early rounds, to avoid being forced back by Canelo, establishing a promising, but far from conclusive, points advantage.
The trend continued as the fight grew in intensity. For every round Canelo appeared to edge, Crawford would hit back and win a couple of his own. Sharp and decisive movement allowed Crawford to avoid being caught on the ropes more than a handful of times, and as the fight wore on, he was even able to test Canelo’s legendary chin, much to the Mexican’s surprise.
While the unanimous decision was no surprise, the judges’ scorecards seemed slightly too close, at least to my amateur eye, but that will be of no concern to Crawford, who can add the undisputed Super Middleweight title to an already extraordinary resume.
Canelo is still unquestionably a legend of the sport. He is perhaps not the fighter he was a few years ago, but this should not detract from what a challenging opponent he would have been for Crawford. Which only makes the standard of his performance and victory all the more impressive.
Image credits: “Terence Crawford during a podcast in 2023” by MILLION DOLLAZ WORTH OF GAME is licensed under CC BY 3.0.