Janibek Alimkhanuly, the undefeated middleweight world champion, has set his sights on Canelo Alvarez. The Kazakh fighter called out the unified super-middleweight champion after his recent victory in March 2024.
Alimkhanuly pushed his record to 17-0 with a dominant performance against Anauel Ngamissengue. He stopped his opponent inside five rounds, marking his ninth stoppage in his last ten fights. After the win, Alimkhanuly wasted no time in challenging Canelo.
"Canelo! Where are you? I am the king of middleweight! You think you are a king too! Let's show the world a fight between two kings!"
Alimkhanuly didn't stop there. He later added on social media that a fight with Canelo would be "Easy work."
Canelo, who holds the WBC, WBA, and WBO super-middleweight titles, already has his 2025 schedule mapped out. He's getting ready to face William Scull in May for the IBF title, which would make him undisputed at 168 pounds. After that, he's got a big fight lined up with Terence Crawford in September.
Crawford, the WBA super-welterweight champion, will move up two weight classes for the Canelo fight. He last fought in August 2023, beating Israil Madrimov.
While Alimkhanuly wants Canelo, there are other fights that make sense for him at middleweight. He could face Erislandy Lara, who holds the WBA middleweight title, or Carlos Adames, the WBC middleweight champion.
The weight difference between Alimkhanuly and Canelo might be a hurdle. Alimkhanuly fights at middleweight (160 pounds), while Canelo competes at super-middleweight (168 pounds).
For now, Alimkhanuly will have to wait and see if his callout gets Canelo's attention. With Canelo's busy schedule and the weight class difference, it might be a while before we see these two "kings" face off in the ring.
