Canelo Alvarez showed his dominant form once again, winning a unanimous decision against Edgar Berlanga in Las Vegas last September. The Mexican star retained his WBC, WBA, and WBO super-middleweight titles in a one-sided affair.
Alvarez controlled the fight from start to finish, winning virtually every round and even scoring a knockdown against his opponent. This victory marks Canelo's fifth straight win by decision, with his last knockout coming against Caleb Plant in 2021 when he became the undisputed champion at 168 pounds.
After the fight, Berlanga gave his thoughts on Canelo's punching power.
"I'll say he hits the hardest for sure," Berlanga said, comparing Alvarez to other hard hitters he's faced like Cuban boxer Roamer Alexis Angulo.
Berlanga also shared his experience of being on the receiving end of Canelo's punches:
"I already told myself 'I know I'm going to get hit, I know I'm going to get hit on my chin', but I've got to bit down on my mouthpiece and push. It comes with boxing, the greats got dropped got hurt, but it's about how you come back."
The fight wasn't without its challenges for Berlanga. In the third round, he got caught with a left hook that sent him to the canvas. But he managed to get back up and finish the fight.
Canelo's comfortable win against Berlanga sets the stage for his next move. He's expected to face William Scull for the IBF super-middleweight title, aiming to regain his undisputed status after being stripped of the belt for choosing to fight Berlanga instead of his mandatory challenger.
Looking further ahead, there's talk of a potential clash with Terence Crawford in September 2024. That fight would pit two of boxing's biggest stars against each other and could be one of the biggest events in the sport's recent history.
