The last time Canelo Alvarez will be going out is always going to be a big occasion, although fans may have hoped that he would have faced someone with a lot more potential threat. You never know in Boxing, but this looks a mismatch and the only hope is that Canelo is ready to take on opponents with stronger resumes next year.
Of course he has done so much in the sport already that it is really up to Canelo what Canelo does.
Even the big money offered by Saudi Arabia is not distracting Canelo from his own plans, much to their frustration, and we should perhaps just enjoy seeing this legendary fighter while he is still willing to put it all on the line.
Any Pay-Per-View involving Canelo Alvarez is going to have a few big names on the undercard and this one is no different. It is going up against a big UFC event on the same night, in the same City, but Canelo remains a massive draw and there will be plenty of eyes on this one.
And we are now one week away from the big Riyadh Season card at Wembley Stadium headlined by Anthony Joshua and Daniel Dubois.
Canelo Alvarez vs Edgar Berlanga
Some fans may disagree, but Canelo Alvarez remains the King at Super Middleweight and he will be defending two of the World Titles that he has retained after dropping the IBF.
There is still a massive clamour to see Alvarez take on David Benavidez, but that fight seemingly holds little interest for the Mexican.
It is not a 'duck', but Canelo is clearly at a time of his career where he wants to fight who HE wants and not what the fans want. Those who support him still turn up in big numbers to any fight night headlined by Canelo and he is a huge favourite to make it five straight wins since losing to Dmitry Bivol in his attempt to win the Light Heavyweight World Title.
This feels like a mismatch and Edgar Berlanga is perhaps fortune to get the call.
You cannot blame him for taking the fight and Berlanga is young enough to recover, but the excitement around this Boxer has dropped considerably since he was stringing a long run of First Round Knock Outs together.
There is nothing on his resume to suggest Berlanga is going to have the qualities to cause an upset and the only question is whether he is going to be willing to go through the fire to try and turn things around. Recent Canelo opponents have looked happy enough to reach the cards and see that as something of a victory, but Edgar Berlanga and his team have been speaking about the desire to put it all on the line.
Once in the ring, plans can change very quickly, but the hope is that Berlanga will be true to his word.
In reality, he is not winning this fight without taking the risks and he is the naturally bigger man and has to try and impose that on this contest. He is not going to win this one on the cards, but pushing forward may just give Canelo an opportunity to end his run without a Stoppage victory.
The output from Canelo has certainly dipped, which is not a surprise at this stage of his career, but he still has the power to have Knocked Down each of his last three opponents. Pushing through the gears to find the Stoppage has been missing, but the hope is that Edgar Berlanga will not lose his intensity if he is put down and it may lead to Canelo showing the massive gap in levels between the fighters.
There are some big names on the undercard, although some of those Boxers are most certainly on the backend of their careers.
Erislandy Lara is still performing at a decent level though and he should have enough to keep Danny Garcia at arm's length in their chief support bout. The latter has had a very good career, but has been massively inactive, is going up in weight and might just have the pride left to reach the cards.
MY PICKS: Canelo Alvarez to Win Between 5-8 @ 3.20 Ladbrokes (1 Unit)
Erislandy Lara to Win by Decision/Technical Decision @ 2.37 Paddy Power (1 Unit)
Boxing 2024: 25-43, + 10.41 Units (92 Units Staked, + 11.32% Yield)
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