Terrence Crawford will become the first male boxer to win three unified division titles after beating Canelo Alvarez by unanimous decision.
Terrence Crawford has been an unanimous victory over Saul “Canero” Alvarez to become the indisputable super middleweight champion in a thrilling contest at the Allegant Stadium in Las Vegas.
Crawford set the pace from the start of Saturday night with a measuring display showing off his incredible hand speed and accurate footwork as the judges scored the fight in America’s favor.
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This victory made Crawford the first male boxer to be selected as an indisputable champion in three different weight classes.
“I’m not here by chance. Canelo is a great champion. I have to take off my hat from him. He’s a great competitor and I have great respect for him. He was fighting like a champion.”
When asked if he would fight again, he said: “I don’t know, I have to sit with my team and we’ll talk about it.
“I am grateful for all the supporters and hatred. I am grateful to you all. I am yelling to the fans and those who support Canelo. We are going home to the kids.”
Both Alvarez and Crawford have been recognized as world’s top pound pound boxers in the past, so they have promised that the fight will always be a boxing masterclass.
The pair brought an entertaining battle with over 70,000 people attending through a 12-round showcase, with millions of people in attendance and breathing on Netflix watching.
Crawford, an indisputable champion of both light welterweight and welterweight, and a four-division world champion, has bolstered two weight classes for the match.
He tilted the scale the same as Alvarez’s on Friday’s weighing Friday at a career-high 167.5 pounds (75.98 kg), but that step-up had no impact on his mobility.
Acutely aware of his opponent’s superior power, Crawford was a great boxer for most of the match, skillfully neutralising Alvarez’s offense, involving dangerous balancing acts.
The 37-year-old said he jumped out of danger, kept his distance and hit his opponent. Intermittent attacks by small boxers placed Alvarez on his hind legs.
The Mexican champion connected with several body shots early on, but after being recorded throughout the first half he paid attention to the wind and retaliated against the brute force in search of a knockout.
That knockout never came.
If anything, Crawford grew confidently, landing a catastrophic combination, improving his record to 42-0 (31 knockouts), and absorbing the punches that sneaked his guards in to keep his amazing, unbeaten streak alive.
For Alvarez, even defeat was pride.
“I’m the winner of being here. The fact that I’m here makes me the winner. I take a risk, and that’s what I did,” the 35-year-old said.
“It’s great to share the ring with a great fighter like him. If I do it again, it’s great. I’ve already achieved a lot in boxing. My legacy is already there.
This fight had already been compared to some of the greatest people in Las Vegas’ rich history before the two contestants tapped their gloves.
He never broke his attendance record for the Battle of Las Vegas. In 1982, it was previously 29,214 due to the 13th knockout of heavyweight champion Jerry Cooney at Caesars Palace’s specially constructed outdoor stadium.
However, the impact of this battle exceeded Las Vegas. It was on Netflix rather than pay-per-view, so promoters wanted to see numbers where cards weren’t seen since the 1970s, when large matches were often on broadcast networks.
This could become the norm for the future now that UFC president and CEO Dana White is involved in boxing. This is his first card in cooperation with fellow promoter Riyadh season.
The Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) signed a seven-year deal with Paramount last month, choosing to put the product on its streaming service, rather than the pay-per-view (PPV) model that combat sports used for the most important events.
Meanwhile, on the undercard, Irish’s Kalam Walsh defeated Fernando Vargas JR, while super middleweight Christian Mbili and Leicester Martinez delivered a slugfest that ended in a draw.
