By: Hans Themistode
When facing Canelo Alvarez (51-1-2, 35 KOs) there are a number of things to be wary of. Canelo has a ton of power and speed. He also knows how to use those attributes. The boxing IQ of Canelo is as good as it gets as well. Lastly and most importantly, the judges absolutely love him. For the few of you that are laughing, that actually was not a joke.
In the career of Canelo Alvarez, he has had his fair share of questionable decisions. In his first fight against GGG he was given a draw. Many fans and media alike felt that was the wrong decision. The subsequent rematch went in the favor of Canelo and although it was a much closer fight, many felt as though that fight as well should have went in GGG’s favor.
How about his 2014 fight against Erislandy Lara? The outrage was at an all-time high when the judges ruled in Canelo’s favor. Lara continuously landed shots while making Canelo miss. That wasn’t enough to get him the decision.
The lone blemish on the record of Canelo came during a 2013 matchup with Floyd Mayweather. The aforementioned Mayweather absolutely schooled Canelo. It wasn’t particularly close in any way shape or form, yet some how one judge managed to score the contest a draw. Although that judge was ultimately over ruled by the remaining judges it still left a bad taste in the mouth of those that were involved.
Should Daniel Jacobs (35-2, 29 KOs) be worried about an unfavorable scorecard? He should be.
The old expression in boxing goes, “take the decision out of the judges hands.” That essentially means to knock your opponent out. The only problem with this is that Canelo has quite possibly the best chin in all of boxing. Jacobs carries a ton of power but it seems unlikely that he will turn this into a short night.
Discussing officiating is never a good sign. Jacobs shouldn’t head into his May 4th contest worried about not receiving a fair shake in the judges eyes. If he truly is the better fighter as he has proclaimed time and time again, then simply prove it.
If Jacobs does get screwed by the judges then at the very least he will be viewed favorably in the eyes of the fans.
For the sake of boxing, we all hope that this contest does not come down to shady scoring. Unfortunately, in the career of Canelo, the judges have always had his back.
Jacobs may need to fight the perfect fight in order to get the biggest win of his career, and even that might not be good enough.