Saul ‘Canelo‘ Alvarez is under increasing pressure from fans and analysts to face unbeaten number one contender and former champion David Benavidez.
The 27-year-old beat both Caleb Plant and Demetrius Andrade in 2023 to cement his position, but a fight with the four-belt 168 champion continues to elude him, so much so that he recently moved up to light-heavyweight.
Benavidez’ debut 175 win over Oleksandr Gvozdyk earned him the WBC Interim Title, but the performance didn’t impress all viewers – particularly in the second half of the fight when he started to noticeably fade following a strong start.
Speaking on Pro Box TV to that effect, former world champion turned pundit Paulie Malignaggi said Canelo now may use his would-be rival’s latest performance as an ‘excuse’ to avoid the fight.
“I don’t think he goes near Benavidez. He’ll actually maybe use this as the excuse in the opposite way – he’ll say he doesn’t look good, he’s lacklustre, what do I need to fight this guy for? I’ll go fight a John Ryder.
I stick with what I’ve said for the last couple of years, he’s not gonna fight him.”
Post-fight, Benavidez confirmed he would move back down to super-middleweight to continue to chase Canelo. WBC President Mauricio Sulaiman said he was welcome to petition to keep hold of the Interim Titles in both divisions.
Following a straightforward win over Jaime Munguia in May, Canelo is expected to return in September with WBA mandatory challenger Edgar Berlanga in with a good shout of landing his opportunity.
