There were many familiarities in Saul “Canelo” Alvarez’s win over Edgar Berlanga on Saturday, but also some fresh narrative threads in the latest chapter of the Mexican’s story.
Just as he had done in his previous three fights, the super-middleweight champion dropped his opponent en route to a points win, yet this was not a dull continuation of what some have deemed an uninspiring phase of Canelo’s career.
The 34-year-old has been the face of boxing for the best part of a decade and has beaten many world champions, but his recent choice of opponents and the nature of his performances have frustrated many fans. Against John Ryder last spring, Jermell Charlo last September, and Jaime Munguia this May, Canelo was comfortably good enough to retain his titles – yet never quite daring enough to push for a finish.
And while the same was true on Saturday, as Canelo dropped Berlanga in round three and recorded scores of 117-110, 118-109 and 118-109, things felt different.
Canelo fought the (now previously) unbeaten American in front of a raucous crowd on Mexican Independence weekend, with Berlanga playing the bad guy and playing up to the audience at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas.
Throughout the bout, the pair traded fouls and heated words. Berlanga, 27, threw a clear low blow in the second round, after Canelo landed two illegal punches to the back. In the eighth round, Canelo seemed to intentionally throw a clean right cross after the referee had paused the action, in retaliation to Berlanga using his head as a weapon.
And as the conclusion of the contest crept closer, the super-middleweights continued to jab both physically and verbally, barking at one another during the rounds and between them.
Yet after the final bell, the boxers immediately touched gloves and embraced, before trading words again but in much kinder fashion than before – and for some time.
It all added an element of enjoyment to a fight that could have felt so formulaic in this late stage of Canelo’s glittering career. The important details are that Canelo dropped his challenger with a perfect left hook in round three, took Berlanga’s zero, and retained the unified titles.
But on this night, the fans seemed to have more fun than at recent Canelo fights, and the same appeared to apply to Alvarez himself – and even Berlanga, despite his defeat.
While the scores show that Berlanga was well beaten, he earned Canelo’s respect through resilience and a desire to keep firing back while Alvarez applied near-constant pressure. The American, of Puerto Rican descent, even landed several picture-perfect crosses on the Mexican, only for Canelo’s famous chin – and his ability to roll with punches – to deflate Berlanga.
And he will have left the T-Mobile Arena deflated, of course, but not without a useful lesson for the rest of his career.
“He did good,” Canelo said of Berlanga, before opening up on their post-fight conversation, which had played out in Spanish. “He said he respects me, I’m his idol. He said he feels bad for the way he acted. With some adrenaline, I got a little angry; I’m Mexican, man,” Canelo laughed, before shouting: “Viva Mexico, cabrones!
“Now what are they gonna say?” he added, referring to his critics. “I fight younger fighters; before they said I only fight older fighters. They always talk. I’m the best fighter in the world.”
That, he may or may not be. But he is a special fighter, and this became a special night in a special career.
