By Rich Lopez
This Saturday will be the Superfight we have been waiting for. Canelo is stepping up two weight classes to the light heavyweight division to face the dangerous Sergey Kovalev. Kovalev’s WBO title will be on the line and he will be making his second defense of the title. Many fans expected a catch weight in this fight, but the good news is there will be no catch weight.
What is at stake for both fighters?
Sergey “Krusher” Kovalev (34-4-1, 29 KO’s), of Russia, was once the man in the light heavyweight division and once held the WBA, IBF, and WBO titles. After two losses to Andre Ward (one of them by knockout) and a knockout loss to Eleider Alvarez, it seemed that Kovalev was finished with his career. However Kovalev made a comeback this year. He defeated Eleider Alvarez in a rematch to regain the WBO Light Heavyweight title and then he knocked out top rising contender Anthony Yarde in the 11th round. As much as Kovalev would like to fight the likes of Dmitry Bivol and Artur Beterbiev in unification bouts, how can he say “No” to a Canelo fight? Not only will Kovalev score the biggest payday of his career but he has a chance to beat the best pound for pound fighter in the game. Beating Canelo will put Kovalev in the top pound for pound rankings where he once was.
Saul “Canelo” Alvarez (52-1-2, 35 KO’s), of Mexico, is boxing’s biggest star at the moment. He has been a top fighter for about eight years now and is still only 29 years old. He has already won titles in three different weight classes (super welterweight, middleweight, and super middleweight). He is also the current Lineal Middleweight champion which matters the most. Canelo will be chasing history and if he wins, he will become the 4th Mexican to win a title in a fourth weight class. Juan Manuel Marquez, Erik Morales, and Jorge Arce were the other fighters that accomplished this already. To me, Canelo is the best fighter in the world pound for pound. Some critics might argue that Terrance Crawford or Vasyl Lomachenko are the best fighters in the world. Either way nobody can argue that Canelo is in the top three at least. If Canelo wins on Saturday, I believe there will be no doubt that Canelo is pound for pound the best fighter in the world.
The big questions going into the fight:
Will Kovalev be too big and strong for the smaller Canelo? Will Canelo catch Kovalev at the right time? Can Canelo take the hard punches of Kovalev? Will Canelo be too quick for Kovalev? All of these questions will be answered on November 2nd.
Who wins?
I believe the fight will start In Kovalev’s favor. Kovalev will use his height and reach to his advantage. Kovalev has a good jab and this will be a problem for Canelo. Canelo is a good boxer but will have a tough time getting in to land his punches. As we get into the mid rounds, Canelo will make adjustments and work the body. The body shots have been Kovalev’s weak spot. From there I think Canelo will break Kovalev down and I don’t think the 36 year old Kovalev will be able to pick up a second wind. I think many will pick Canelo by decision but I’m going to be bold and say Canelo wins by a 10th round TKO in a great fight.
