With Canelo Alvarez entering what appears to be a concluding phase of his remarkable career, it`s an opportune moment to reflect on the most pivotal bouts that have shaped the journey of this future Hall of Famer.
While the announcement that Canelo would face William Scull – a name largely unfamiliar outside of dedicated boxing circles – might seem underwhelming, it signifies the beginning of a new chapter for the reigning super middleweight champion.
This upcoming bout marks the first of four fights under Saudi Arabia`s Riyadh Season partnership and presents him with an opportunity to reclaim the IBF belt he relinquished last year by declining to face the mandatory challenger, Scull. Should he emerge victorious, a significantly bigger fight potentially awaits Alvarez (62-2-2, 39 KOs) in September against two-division undisputed champion Terence Crawford, a matchup anticipated to be the premier boxing event of 2025.
Becoming the undisputed super middleweight champion once more would represent a significant milestone in Alvarez`s two-decade long career, but he has already achieved many others.
Here’s a look back at the 11 biggest moments for one of the contemporary era`s most prominent boxing stars.
11. Dominant Decision Victory Over Matthew Hatton – May 3, 2011
At the young age of 20, Alvarez secured his inaugural world championship by achieving a comprehensive decision victory against Matthew Hatton, the sibling of former two-division world champion Ricky Hatton.
Following the bout, Canelo stated, “This marked my first attempt at a world title, and it`s merely the beginning. I plan to win them all for my supporters and establish myself as Mexico`s next major boxing icon.”
His prediction proved accurate.
Alvarez claimed the vacant WBC junior middleweight title, and for a considerable portion of the boxing audience, this contest was their initial exposure to him.
Despite having been a professional for half a decade already, Canelo registered overwhelming scorecards of 119-108 across all three judges` cards at the Honda Center in Anaheim, California. He received a one-point deduction for hitting Hatton during a clinch, but aside from that, he secured victory in every round.
Reflecting on the fight in 2021, Hatton recounted, “Immediately, I recognized his exceptional talent – he possessed great power and his punch selection was outstanding. It was a difficult night for me. As a career welterweight, I faced a significant size disparity, putting me at a severe disadvantage. It felt akin to approaching a battle armed only with a pea shooter.”
10. Unanimous Decision Against Shane Mosley – May 5, 2012
For the second consecutive year, Canelo achieved a career-altering win during Cinco de Mayo weekend. This particular triumph served as a springboard for more significant future fights.
Mosley, aged 40 at the time, was clearly past his prime, showing diminished reflexes and speed. Nevertheless, securing a victory against a boxing icon provided an important boost for the then 21-year-old`s career and public image.
Canelo`s unanimous decision victory was featured as the chief support bout to Floyd Mayweather`s win over Miguel Cotto at the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas. Canelo repeatedly rocked Mosley throughout the fight, landing 348 out of 673 punches (52%).
“I hadn`t anticipated him being so fast or so skilled,” Mosley commented on Canelo after the fight. “He ranks among the top fighters I`ve faced. Mayweather is quick, Cotto, all those guys I`ve fought. He`s certainly on their level.”
9. Domination Over Julio Cesar Chavez Jr. – May 6, 2017
National pride was a key element when Canelo moved up to super middleweight and completely outclassed Chavez on Cinco de Mayo weekend. Immediately following this dominant performance, he announced his highly anticipated fight against unified middleweight champion Gennadiy Golovkin for September 16, coinciding with Mexican Independence Day weekend.
The most thrilling aspect of the one-sided, predictable fight, where scores read a unanimous 120-108 at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas, was that it directly paved the way for the exceptionally entertaining Canelo vs. Golovkin trilogy.
The boxing community eagerly awaited the confirmation of this long-anticipated showdown.
Chavez was significantly outmatched, and the fight itself was perhaps overhyped, but his name (as the son of the legendary Julio Cesar Chavez, a three-weight world champion) made this a nationally significant event for Mexico. Canelo demonstrated much greater speed against the largest opponent he had faced up to that point. He held a substantial 228-71 advantage in total punches landed and an 83-15 edge in jabs.
Canelo’s convincing victory cleared the path for the Golovkin clash and likely instilled in Alvarez the confidence that he could effectively compete beyond the middleweight division.
8. TKO Victory Against Billy Joe Saunders – May 8, 2021
Following a heated and acrimonious buildup, Canelo delivered a brutal defeat to Saunders in their super middleweight title unification bout.
Saunders was struck by a devastating right uppercut in the eighth round that caused his right eye to swell shut and inflicted damage severe enough to prompt his corner to stop the fight before the start of the ninth round.
Canelo relished the moment in the final seconds of the eighth round at AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas, waving to the crowd of 73,126 fans (a record for an indoor boxing event) after inflicting the damage that later required Saunders to undergo surgery for a fractured right orbital bone.
Saunders was expected to trouble Alvarez with his southpaw stance, movement, and slick boxing skills, but Canelo delivered a performance that emphatically underscored his status as a top pound-for-pound fighter. At the time of the stoppage, Saunders was trailing on the official scorecards: 78-74, 77-75, and 78-74. This victory allowed Canelo to add the WBO title to his WBC and WBA super middleweight belts.
7. Unanimous Decision Victory Over Miguel Cotto – Nov. 21, 2015
Canelo became a two-weight world champion by securing a unanimous decision win against the highly popular Miguel Cotto.
Cotto, 35 years old at the time, was a decade older than Canelo, but his extensive experience as a four-division world champion led many to believe he would be Canelo`s toughest test since his loss to Mayweather two years prior.
However, Canelo proved too sharp and powerful, winning the vacant WBC middleweight title at the Mandalay Bay Events Center in Las Vegas.
“I will always have respect for him, he`s a great champion, but now it`s my time, my era,” Alvarez declared after the fight.
Defeating Cotto solidified Alvarez`s position as boxing`s next major star following Floyd Mayweather`s retirement two months earlier. This fight reportedly generated 900,000 pay-per-view buys and significantly boosted Canelo`s standing in pound-for-pound rankings.
6. Majority Decision Loss to Floyd Mayweather – Sept. 14, 2013
Alvarez`s first professional defeat, surprisingly, served to enhance his reputation.
Canelo lost a majority decision to Floyd Mayweather on boxing`s grandest stage at the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas, in an event promoted as “The One.”
While one judge scored the bout a draw, the other two scored it 117-111 and 116-112 in favor of Mayweather, who claimed Canelo`s WBC belt and defended his WBA title.
“Canelo is a young, strong champion. A great Mexican champion,” Mayweather said post-fight. “I have great respect for him and for Mexico. He is capable of overcoming this loss and bouncing back.”
Mayweather made Alvarez miss punches at a rate no previous opponent had managed. Mayweather`s slick defense and movement allowed him to outbox Canelo for significant portions of the fight.
“I couldn`t connect with him, he was extremely elusive,” Canelo commented after experiencing his first defeat.
Despite the loss, Canelo`s performance on Mexican Independence Day weekend further elevated his career to an even higher level. The event shattered previous records for the highest-grossing pay-per-view fight of all time, generating $150 million in revenue from 2.2 million pay-per-view buys. This fight highlighted Canelo`s significant drawing power as one of boxing`s biggest attractions.
5. TKO Victory Over Caleb Plant – Nov. 6, 2021
Alvarez made history by becoming the first undisputed world champion at 168 pounds when he stopped Caleb Plant in their bout at the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas.
In the eleventh round, Canelo landed a precise left hook that slipped through Plant`s guard to his temple, immediately followed by a right uppercut, resulting in the first knockdown. He then pursued with a barrage of punches, sending an unsteady Plant to the canvas again and securing the decisive victory.
“This means so much to me, for the history of Mexico, to be an undisputed champion,” stated Alvarez, who earned a guaranteed $40 million from the fight.
At the time of the stoppage, Plant was trailing on all three judges` scorecards: 96-94, 98-92, and 97-93. Canelo added Plant`s IBF belt to his collection of WBC, WBA, and WBO super middleweight titles.
This marked Canelo`s third consecutive stoppage victory, a impressive run of form that reaffirmed his status as the pound-for-pound number one fighter at that time.
4. Knockout Victory Against Sergey Kovalev – Nov. 2, 2019
Alvarez, the reigning middleweight world champion, made a significant leap up two weight divisions and 15 pounds to secure an eleventh-round knockout win over Sergey Kovalev, claiming the WBO belt at the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas.
Considering his opponent was a natural light heavyweight, this brilliant knockout finish stands out, arguably surpassing those against James Kirkland, Amir Khan, Caleb Plant, and Liam Smith – all fights well worth revisiting.
This landmark victory also saw the then 29-year-old Canelo become a world champion in a fourth weight class, an achievement that placed him alongside esteemed Mexican fighters like Juan Manuel Marquez, Erik `Terrible` Morales, and Jorge `Travieso` Arce.
The fight was competitive in the early rounds, with Kovalev relying heavily on his jab and Canelo focusing his attack on the body. Kovalev`s size and jab limited Canelo`s effectiveness initially, but Canelo was ahead on two of the three scorecards (96-94, 95-95) at the time of the stoppage. Canelo`s speed, energy, and combination punching became more prominent in the later rounds before he landed a left hook to the jaw that visibly stunned Kovalev, followed by a powerful right hand that left the Russian draped motionlessly over the ropes.
“It was a very close fight because he was defensive, he was closing up his guard. All he was doing was try to establish points, but we knew what was coming. Inevitably it would come, and everything came out the way we had planned,” said Canelo, who reportedly earned $35 million for the fight.
According to CompuBox statistics, Alvarez landed 133 of 345 punches (39%) compared to Kovalev`s 115 of 745 (15%).
3. Controversial Split Draw Against Gennadiy Golovkin I – Sept. 16, 2017
Many observers felt that Golovkin was unfairly denied a victory in their initial encounter, which ended in a controversial split draw in 2017 at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas.
Leading up to the fight, the Golovkin-Canelo showdown was compared to the thrilling and brutal middleweight classic between Marvin Hagler and Thomas Hearns in 1985. However, Canelo did not engage with GGG aggressively enough to make it a true classic, and Golovkin failed to land the clean, concussive blows that had finished nearly all of his professional opponents up to that point. Alvarez primarily sought to counter Golovkin, who acted as the aggressor and was significantly busier.
Canelo was visibly affected by the reaction to the first fight, which the vast majority of the boxing world believed Golovkin had won. This fight generated over 1.3 million pay-per-view buys. One judge scored it even, another favored GGG 115-113, while a third judge faced widespread criticism for her 118-110 score in favor of Canelo.
“This is terrible for the sport, for boxing,” Golovkin stated after the fight.
Canelo was even met with boos from some sections of the crowd following the announcement of the draw. Nevertheless, this fight marked the beginning of a trilogy that would ultimately define a significant portion of Canelo`s career, providing him with the crucial opportunity to eventually overcome one of the best middleweight champions in boxing history and silence his critics.
2. Majority Decision Victory Against Gennadiy Golovkin II – Sept. 15, 2018
A positive PED test for Alvarez in March 2018 forced the postponement of the rematch, injecting further bad blood into the rivalry. By the time they stepped into the ring for the second fight, genuine animosity existed between them. Alvarez attributed the positive test to consuming contaminated meat in his hometown of Guadalajara.
The second fight, also at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas, was a better contest, and Alvarez`s performance was improved. The majority decision in his favor was debated, but it did not attract the same level of heated dispute as the outcome of the first fight. Again, there were no knockdowns. Canelo won by scores of 115-113 on two cards, with the third judge scoring it a 114-114 draw. Canelo was notably more aggressive, backing up GGG throughout the fight, and ultimately handed Golovkin his first professional defeat – marking it as perhaps the best win of Canelo`s career at that time.
“He was the one retreating, it was a clear victory,” Canelo asserted after the fight.
The victory allowed Canelo to move past the Golovkin rivalry for a period, embarking on a dominant 7-1 run in his subsequent eight fights before their trilogy encounter.
1. Decisive Unanimous Decision Over Gennadiy Golovkin III – Sept. 17, 2022
Canelo`s trilogy with Golovkin, concluding back at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas, tells a story arc involving controversy, seeking redemption, and ultimately achieving triumph for Alvarez.
The final fight, taking place four years after the second bout, was not as thrilling as the initial two encounters, largely due to Canelo emerging as the clear winner against a then 40-year-old Golovkin. Alvarez retained his undisputed super middleweight championship with a unanimous decision victory, confirmed by scorecards of 115-113, 115-113, and 116-112.
Crucially, this victory allowed Canelo to definitively settle the trilogy, securing a much-needed win to rebound from a decision loss to Dmitry Bivol at light heavyweight just four months prior.
“Everyone recognizes this is a high-caliber level. This is the premier fighter in boxing. Everyone knows who Canelo is,” Golovkin acknowledged. “This fight was more tactical. Tonight, Canelo was superior. Congratulations to Canelo.”
Alvarez has remained unbeaten in his fights since this conclusive victory.