Saúl “Canelo” Álvarez will never be as great as Julio César Chávez
The career of Mexican Saúl “Canelo” Álvarez is worthy of comparison with that of several of the best boxers in history, such as his compatriot Julio César Chávez. There are several aspects in which the 31-year-old “manito” would already be equated with the legend, but he is still a few steps below “Mr. Knockout.”
Álvarez has been on the world boxing circuit for 16 years, becoming over the years one of the best fighters in the world in four different weight classes. He has a record of 57 wins, one loss and two draws, with the setback against Floyd Mayweather Jr. being the only bump in his career.
.@Canelo is ESPN’s Fighter of the Year! The Mexican star fought three times en route to capturing the undisputed super middleweight championship, including wins inside the distance over Billy Joe Saunders and Caleb Plant. Congrats to the best in the worldhttps://t.co/vZRRIQmwfj
– Mike Coppinger (@MikeCoppinger) December 30, 2021
Currently, he is the holder of the World Boxing Association (WBA), World Boxing Organization (WBO), World Boxing Council (WBC) and International Boxing Federation (IBF) world championship belts. , thus appearing as undisputed king.
Chávez, for his part, is seen by experts as one of the greatest virtuosos in this sport, since he had to face one of the best eras in the history of his category, as suggested by expert Bernard Fernández. He achieved a superlative 107-6-2 mark, which could have been better if he had made the decision to retire earlier.
In addition, he became world champion in Super Feather, Light and Super Lightweight of the WBC, WBA and IBF, setting all kinds of records for his longevity. He reached an undefeated 89-0 mark from the start of his career, battling top-tier rivals Hector Camacho, Pernell Whitaker and Greg Haugen.
Where is Canelo Álvarez in the history of Mexican boxing? ?? ?https://t.co/7f7PG62txb
– ESPN KnockOut (@ESPNKnockOut) December 31, 2021
It is undeniable that “Canelo” is worthy of the best boxers in history, but unlike Chávez, he has not had great rivals and precisely in the fight that could have consecrated him, he was defeated by Mayweather.
Álvarez’s big bet to raise his status will be to conquer more and more weight categories, since he has currently become champion of four different ones (Super welterweight, Medium, Super middleweight and Light heavyweight). For this reason, he plans to go to the Cruiserweight in 2022. However, even then, he may never be able to leave the shadow of Chávez.
