By: Hans Themistode
We are only a few days away from arguably the biggest fight of the year. IBF Middleweight title holder Daniel Jacobs (35-2, 29 KOs) will have his biggest test to date when he takes on unified champion Canelo Alvarez (51-1-2, 35 KOs). These two are slated to throw down on May 4th, at the T-Mobile arena in Las Vegas, Nevada.
Fans are in for a real treat when these two lock horns. Who exactly wins this contest is anybody’s guess as they are very evenly matched. If you are still scratching your head trying to figure out who has the edge, don’t worry, we’ve got you covered.
Photo Credit: Golden Boy Boxing Twitter Account
Power
Canelo Alvarez
Canelo has always been known as a big puncher. He has a few highlight level knockouts under his belt including, a body shot that took the air completely out of Liam Smith. A perfectly timed right hand to the chin of Amir Khan, and a one punch KO of James Kirkland. All of those knockout victories reached the Sport Center reel. His power really cannot be questioned. He couldn’t put a dent in the chin of Gennady Golovkin (GGG) but that’s mainly because GGG apparently has a chin forged of iron. Usually when Canelo hits his opponents on the button they crumble.
Daniel Jacobs
The IBF champ Daniel Jacobs started off his career knocking out 14 of his first 15 opponents. His level of power is staggering. As his level of opposition has increased he has found it more difficult to stop his opponents. He hasn’t scored a stoppage win since his 2016 thrashing of Sergio Mora. Jacobs has however, put his past three opponents on the canvas. He hasn’t been to get the stoppage but he has had them seriously hurt. All Jacobs needs is one opening and it’s lights out.
Verdict
Canelo Alvarez
Jacobs has the higher knockout percentage, but Canelo has knocked out the more impressive competition. Jacobs has plenty of pop in his fist but Canelo seems to have a bit more. They both have a common foe in GGG. Although neither man was able to hurt him, GGG seemed to have an easier time walking through the punches of Jacobs.
It’s a close call but forced to make a decision, Canelo gets the slight nod.
Speed
Canelo Alvarez
Canelo Alvarez has very fast hands. Whenever he lets them go, his opponents have a difficult time getting out of the way. Although his hands are quick, his feet are a bit on the slow side.
Alvarez doesn’t exactly glide across the ring. It’s more of a plodding. Often times he remains flat footed which is great for landing his power shots, but it doesn’t allow him to move around the ring as fast as he would like.
Daniel Jacobs
There is nothing slow about Daniel Jacobs. His hand speed is among the best in boxing. Not only is it hard for opponents to stay away from his shots, but it’s also hard to cut the ring off effectively on him as he has very quick feet.
Danny’s speed make him a nightmare for all of his opponents. The constant movement of his feet along with his fast hands makes it hard for anyone to catch up with him
Verdict
Daniel Jacobs
Sometimes it can look as though Canelo is walking in cement. His hands are very quick but, the lower half of his body just isn’t. He has improved tremendously over the years, but Jacobs is still the much fast fighter.
In terms of hand speed, these two fighters are close. When we add foot speed to the equation, everything leans towards Jacobs.
Defense
Canelo Alvarez
Canelo may not be the fleetest of foot, but he is still extremely hard to hit with a clean shot. His upper body movement is something to marvel at. What separates Canelo from his opponents on the defensive side is that he doesn’t have to take a step back. Often times Canelo stands right in the middle of the ring with his opponents and effortlessly makes them miss. It’s a thing of beauty.
Daniel Jacobs
Jacobs is a responsible fighter defensively. He stays at a safe range, and doesn’t allow his opponents to come charging in. He has very solid head movement but it’s his ability to control distance that makes him difficult to hit.
The IBF champ’s feet also help keep him out of harms way. He is constantly in motion which frustrates his opponents to no end. When Jacobs does find himself along the ropes, he is still a difficult opponent to nail with hard shots. All in all, his defense all around is very impressive.
Verdict
Canelo Alvarez
With Jacobs having the edge in terms of height and reach often times against his opponents, he avoids taking big shots. His feet also keep him out of harms way. With that being said, Canelo does a better job of avoiding big shots. Time and time again he makes his opponents look silly as they miss at a ridiculously high rate. This is another close call but Canelo takes home this category.
Chin
Daniel Jacobs
For a long time, Danny Jacobs has developed a reputation of being a bit chinny. There is a bit of credence to this remark. Jacobs was stopped in the fifth round against Dmitry Pirog back in 2010. Don’t read into this too much as he was dealing with several personal issues outside of the ring. The knockdown he suffered against GGG back in 2017, is also understandable considering how much power the former champion possesses.
His 2015 first round knockdown against Sergio Mora however is unacceptable. Jacobs did go on to win that contest but that’s besides the point. In 36 professional fights, Mora only stopped 9 of his opponent. He just isn’t a power puncher to say the least.
Canelo Alvarez
The unified champ, has a serious set of whiskers on him. He has never hit the deck in his entire career. Canelo was only briefly buzzed in his career at the hands of Jose Miguel Cotto back in 2010. Canelo, who was only 19 at the time stumbled slightly after Cotto connected with a left hand. Other than that blimp on the radar you won’t find Canelo in any trouble from a physical standpoint in the ring in his entire career.
It’s not that Canelo hasn’t been in there with big punchers because he has. His chin is just one of if not the very best out there.
Verdict
Canelo Alvarez
This one isn’t particularly close. Jacobs doesn’t have a bad chin. In fact it’s a good one. Canelo on the other hand has a chin that is on a whole other level in comparison.
Stamina
Canelo Alvarez
The claims that Canelo has issues with his stamina is a bit of hyperbole. Sure, he gets winded during some of his contests but that’s normal. Many have made it seem as though he is huffing and puffing after every round.
In his first fight against GGG, he seemed to be running on fumes during the later rounds. Canelo did a much better job from a fitness standpoint during the rematch, but he does have a few issues when forced to go the full 12 rounds.
Daniel Jacobs
Jacobs seemingly never gets tired. Early on in his career he was stopping everyone, so questions of his stamina seemed appropriate. In his past four contest he has gone the full 12 rounds, and he has looked just as fresh in round 12 as he did in round 1. It is really remarkable how energetic he looks at all times during his contests.
Verdict
Daniel Jacobs
Canelo can fight for 12 full rounds but, Jacobs can seemingly fight for 15 rounds if need be. Jacobs has never looked tired during any contest in his entire career, while Canelo on the other hand has had a few issues. The IBF champ pulls in this category.
Final Say
It was a close call but Canelo just edged out Jacobs in our categories list. This of course wont have any barring on the actual fight but it does show us who has the edge going into the match.
This is a razor close match but on paper it seems as though Canelo has the slight edge going in.