Unified super middleweight (168 lbs) champion Canelo Alvarez (62-2-2, 39 KO’s) and WBA super welterweight (154 lbs) champion Terence Crawford (41-0, 31 KO’s) will not be fighting in the foreseeable future according to The Ring who cited that “a source” had informed them a planned 168-pound clash between the two was cancelled.
For obvious reasons, the only source of note would be The Ring’s owner Turki Alalshikh who was reportedly at the forefront of talks between the two fighters’ teams. Negotiations had started several weeks ago, with reports further indicating the fight would happen in September this year―likely amidst the Mexican Independence Day weekend which Alvarez is known to fight during. The fight was further set to be staged in Las Vegas, with the Allegiant Stadium pinpointed as a potential venue.
More details are set to follow, but speculation is already on the rise as to what could have led to a breakdown of the fight. Prior to the negotiations, Alvarez had stated on multiple occasions that he held no real interest in fighting Crawford, mostly due to him deeming Crawford “too small”.
However, Alvarez had no issues facing Jermell Charlo two years ago as he moved up two divisions from the same weight class where Crawford currently holds the WBA world title; the 154-pound division. Alvarez might have been referring to height when downplaying a fight with Crawford and referring to him being undersized, but again this would be a poor reason not to face another fighter given he already fought a 5’9 fighter in John Ryder at super middleweight. Height, while important when it comes to moving up or down weight classes, is one of a couple of factors that determines a fighter’s size and should not be used as an absolute metric.
Speculatively, the primary reason of Canelo Alvarez being hesitant in fighting Crawford would be the high-risk/low-reward nature of a fight with the pound-for-pound American. As Alvarez expressed himself during an interview with TV Azteca, the Mexican champion believed he would receive little credit for fighting Crawford; win or lose.
That reasoning appears slightly confusing, as Alvarez has had a track record in fighting opponents with no notable name recognition, including the aforementioned John Ryder and the likes of Avni Yildirim (26-5, 15 KO’s) who Alvarez had requested to fight according to the WBC. Given he had no problems facing either Ryder or Yildirim, it becomes more obvious that Alvarez’ concerns are more so centered around suffering a loss to Crawford rather than the lack of credit he’d get for defeating him.
Despite the potential lucrativeness of a Alvarez-Crawford bout, it appears both parties will be moving on with their respective careers for the time being, though it will be interesting to see whether General Entertainment Authority (GEA) chairman Turki Alalshikh will continue to try and arrange the fight given his own expressed interest in making the bout.
