While his latest win early Sunday from Saudi Arabia was not memorable, at least Canelo Alvarez and Terence Crawford made news afterwards confirming a far more compelling matchup for September.
First, the future Hall of Famer Alvarez (now 63-2-2) took care of business with an easy decision over little-known William Scull, who didn’t do much of anything to try to win.
That victory regained Alvarez the IBF super middleweight championship that had been comically stripped from him late last year. And, now he will do battle with the former four-belt undisputed champion at junior welterweight and welterweight in Terence “Bud” Crawford.
Turki Alashikh confirmed early Sunday in the ring that the bout will take place on September 12 at Allegiant Stadium in Las Vegas, which will host more than 65,000 fans for this undisputed mega fight.
It’s the first time that the American football stadium built recently just off the Las Vegas strip will hold a massive world title boxing PPV.
And, while, the fact that Alvarez and Crawford (41-0, 31 KOs) are fighting was not a secret, this was the first time that the actual date was being confirmed by Alashikh, the Saudi Arabian promoter and financial backer of most of the big bouts now in boxing.
For his part, Alvarez said in the ring standing feet away from Crawford: “Crawford is one of the best out there. And, you know I like to share the ring with that kind of fighter. It is my pleasure.”
Meanwhile, Crawford who has not fought since his August junior middleweight debut winning the WBA 154 lb. title over Israel Madrimov said Sunday morning in the ring: “I’m feeling blessed. Everything’s happened for a reason. And, there’s a reason why I am here. And, in September, I’m going to show the world what greatness looks like.”
And now attention for both fighters will turn to that later this Summer and each other as Alvarez will once again headline in the traditional Mexican Independence Day weekend. And, Crawford tries to pull an upset that would be the greatest win of his already hall-of-fame resume.
More must-reads:
Get the latest news and rumors, customized to your favorite sports and teams. Emailed daily. Always free!