Canelo Alvarez Reflects On Career And Prepares For Showdown Against Berlanga

He Promises a Knockout for His Super Middleweight Title Defense

Canelo Alvarez’s grand arrivals in Las Vegas for his title defense /

By Moses Ochieng

At 34, Alvarez (61-2-2, 39 KOs) took a moment to enjoy the applause from a packed crowd in the MGM Grand lobby, soaking in the admiration and reflecting on his enduring career. His arrival for his defense of the super middleweight titles against Edgar Berlanga appeared smooth and unchallenged.

 Since his 2012 victories over Hall of Famer Shane Mosley and a headlining bout against Josesito Lopez during Mexican Independence weekend, Alvarez has now celebrated 18 grand arrivals in Las Vegas and starred in 17 main events in boxing’s premier city.

“I feel proud … I feel proud I’m still here. I still enjoy all of this. So grateful for my fans. Every time I come, they are here supporting me,” Alvarez said in media reports.

“I love boxing. I enjoy my people, and all of this. I love what I do.”

Alvarez has suffered only two losses in those bouts—both when he pushed beyond his limits. The first came in 2013, when a 23-year-old Alvarez lost by majority decision to Floyd Mayweather, overwhelmed by the experience gap. The second was a unanimous decision loss to prime light-heavyweight champion Dmitrii Bivol, who outmatched Alvarez in size.

 Most of the time, however, Alvarez has emerged victorious, delivering moments worthy of celebration. These include his highlight-reel knockout of Amir Khan in 2016 to open boxing at the T-Mobile Arena, his aggressive performance to narrowly defeat bitter rival Gennadiy Golovkin in their 2018 rematch, and his crushing knockout of light-heavyweight champion Sergey Kovalev in 2019.

 The Mexico vs. Puerto Rico rivalry has long been a cornerstone of boxing, and Alvarez has capitalized on this to justify choosing Berlanga over other opponents' fans have been clamoring for. Knocking out the confident 27-year-old Berlanga (22-0, 17 KOs) with a decisive punch would be a powerful way for Alvarez to remind everyone of his prowess, as critics begin to eye the ticking clock on his storied career.

 “He’s a good fighter. He's strong, he’s young. But he’s nothing new for me. I’ve fought everybody – every style: bigger than me, younger than me, older than me. I know everything about boxing, so my power and experience: he’s going to feel it on Saturday night,” Canelo added.

 “Finishing by knockout is always sweet and I’m going to do it Saturday night,” Alvarez continued.

Alvarez has never been knocked down, much less stopped, despite facing numerous hard-hitting opponents. Berlanga claims he’s prepared, but he will need to deliver the performance of a lifetime and accomplish something no one has ever managed to do to the future Hall of Famer.