Three-weight world champion Claressa Shields believes only one current fighter has what it takes to beat Saul ‘Canelo‘ Alvarez.
The double undisputed fighter has made history on the female side of the sport, and has a fair claim to be ‘the face.’ Her counterpart could still be considered Canelo, who has been the biggest and most lucrative star amongst male fighters for some time now.
With that in mind, he’s in high demand. There aren’t many top contenders in and around super-middleweight that haven’t called him out, but two names stand clear from the rest in their desire.
David Benavidez – a two-time undefeated champion in the 168 ranks – wants nothing more than to face the Mexican legend. His attempts so far have been fruitless, so much so that he’s making the move up to light-heavyweight next to try and capture belts there instead.
The other man is Terence Crawford, previously undisputed at both 140 and 147 looking for a legacy-defining fight against Alvarez that would require a significant jump in weight.
Speaking to Fight Hub TV, Shields listed both fights as high on her list as a fan, but settled on only Crawford to get the win.
“David’s a different type of animal, it’s a fight I wanna see. But I still think the only man that can beat Canelo is Terence Crawford. That’s just what I think and I want to see it.”
Shields is likely referring to potential fights given that Canelo has two losses on his record, one to Floyd Mayweather Jr and the other, more recent, to Dmitry Bivol.
Which fight is more likely is anybody’s guess. In terms of weight, Benavidez should be well ahead in his chances, and he also has the mandatory slot with the WBC, although that has been frustratingly useless so far.
