Saul ‘Canelo‘ Alvarez is 65 fights deep into a pro career that has seen him win world titles in four divisions, but there are still challenges out there.
The Mexican is currently undisputed at super-middleweight and is being hounded for a mandatory shot by undefeated two-time champ David Benavidez.
Canelo has faced many people in the time that the 27-year-old has been calling for the fight, including WBA Light-Heavyweight Champion Dmitry Bivol. It was just one of two times the Mexican has fallen short in his career, allowing Bivol to keep his belt and go on to set up a 175 undisputed clash against Artur Beterbiev, which takes place on October 12.
A rematch from Bivol looks unlikely following failed negotiations, but if Canelo was to move to 175 again in the future, Beterbiev would be waiting.
Asked by KO Artist Sports who would present the bigger challenge, Beterbiev or Benavidez, Canelo had no doubt.
“Oh Beterbiev, yeah. Because he’s a champion, he has something to offer me, he’s strong, he’s another weight. A lot of things.”
It may be Benavidez that gets a fight against the feared light-heavyweight champ first. He recently made his 175 debut – a unanimous decision win over Oleksandr Gvozdyk – to capture the WBC’s Interim belt.
That makes him Interim Champion and number one contender in both divisions. The President of the sanctioning body, Mauricio Sulaiman, recently told Seconds Out that Benavidez could petition to keep both slots if he’s not keen on picking just one.
