Canelo Alvarez saw clash with star tipped to beat Floyd Mayweather shelved after tragic accident

Canelo Alvarez’s failed fight with Paul Williams

On this day in 2012, Canelo was set to fight former WBO welterweight champion Paul Williams, who had been widely touted as the star to end the unbeaten record of the above-mentioned Floyd Mayweather during the Michigan native’s absolute prime in the sport.

However, in May of the same year, Augusta native Williams was involved in a motorcycle accident in his native Georgia, in which he was launched sixty feet after attempting to avoid hitting another vehicle.

Suffering severe bruising to his spinal cord, Williams was left paralyzed from the accident, and as a result, his impressive boxing career came to an end before he ever had the chance to fight Canelo in their scheduled fight.

And with Williams pulled from the fight with Canelo, the Mexican would return to the ring on the same date, scoring his penultimate win before his loss to the undefeated Mayweather.

Canelo Alvarez flattened Josesito Lopez inside 15 minutes

Eventually drawing Riverside puncher Josesito Lopez on this day in 2012, Canelo would make his second-to-last defense of his WBC light middleweight crown with an emphatic win.

Earning a shot against Austin Trout off the back of his win over Lopez, in the fifth round, Canelo would prevail with a TKO stoppage triumph.

Pinning the always-game Lopez in the corner in the final seconds of the fifth round, Canelo would unload with a lengthy barrage of punches, with referee Joe Cortez stepping in with just five seconds remaining in the frame to stop the fight.