By: Hans Themistode
The moment we have all been waiting for is almost here. Canelo Alvarez will look to make history when he moves up two weight divisions to take on WBO Light Heavyweight champion Sergey Kovalev. Even with Canelo having so many disadvantages, many believe he will walk away with the victory this Saturday night. Canelo is rightly favored in this contest, but it is still a dangerous one for him if he isn’t careful.
Let’s take a look at the keys that will lead Canelo Alvarez to victory over Sergey Kovalev.
Photo Credit: Golden Boy Promotions Twitter Account
Attack The Body
This is obvious isn’t it? There’s a reason why Canelo Alvarez has jumped at the opportunity to take on Sergey Kovalev even though he sits two weight divisions above him. Kovalev, although still a great fighter, has a perceived weakness to the body.
“That’s a weak point that he has,” said Alvarez during a recent interview. “We’re going to try to penetrate with the impact to the body.”
Out boxing a much taller and bigger fighter could prove to be too difficult. However, if Canelo can effectively attack the body, he should see plenty of success on Saturday night.
Up The Tempo
Sergey Kovalev isn’t known for having the best gas tank in the world, ironically enough, neither does Canelo. Still, Canelo has worked hard on his conditioning over the years and the results have shown. Kovalev has a tendency to fade late during fights but it might be even more glaring during this contest.
Kovalev is less than three months removed from a tough and grueling fight with Anthony Yarde. He surely hasn’t fully recovered from that contest and Canelo needs to take full advantage of that. If the smaller Canelo can push the pace, we could see Kovalev gas out much earlier than usual.
Fight On The Inside
Fighting on the inside doesn’t necessarily mean to attack the body as previously mentioned. It simply means that Canelo needs to keep this fight in close quarters and not allow Kovalev to fight on the outside where he could possess too many advantages.
For as great as Kovalev has been over the years, he has never developed an inside game. Fighting on the inside is where Canelo shines. If he can force the contest to be fought close as opposed to from long distance, then this will be a fight that he dominates.