By: Hans Themistode
Canelo Alvarez has heard it all before.
“He lost to Erislandy Lara.”
“Floyd Mayweather gave him a boxing lesson.”
“Austin Trout should have been given the decision.”
During the early stages of his career, while Alvarez was already viewed as a great fighter, many believed that his close calls against pure boxers left him a bit vulnerable. With the Mexican star currently pegged to take on WBO super middleweight belt holder Billy Joe Saunders this weekend, there is a growing belief that the British native has the exact style to hand Alvarez the first loss of his career in nearly a decade.
Despite those sentiments, Alvarez simply smiles whenever anyone questions his abilities to adjust to the pure boxing and counter punching style of Saunders. With so much experience under his belt, Alvarez can’t wait to dive into his new bag of tricks come fight night.
“He’s a great fighter,” said Alvarez during their press conference. “He has a lot of abilities and he’s a southpaw but I’m not the same fighter from six or seven years ago. This Saturday I will prove that.”
Alvarez, 30, will place his WBA, WBC and Ring magazine super middleweight titles on the line at the AT&T Stadium in Dallas Texas, in an attempt to snatch away the WBO title of Saunders and move one step closer to becoming an undisputed champion.
The tension between both sides has been noticeable the moment their contest came to fruition several months ago. Saunders, 31, has remained adamant that the moment will not overwhelm him as roughly 70,000 screaming fans are scheduled to be in the arena. Regardless of the pressure seemingly on the shoulders of Alvarez, the Mexican star is unfazed by it all. While the entire event may appear to be pressurized, the pound for pound star simply shrugs his shoulders as he’s been down this road several times over.
“I’ve been involved in a lot of big fights and this is just another day at the office.”