(CNN Spanish) – Saúl “Canelo” Álvarez will return to the ring during Mexican Independence weekend to defend at least one of the super middleweight championship belts.
He will face Edgar Berlanga on Saturday, September 14, a 27-year-old American boxer with Puerto Rican roots who is undefeated with 22 wins and 17 knockouts.
Canelo Álvarez, on Berlanga: You always learn something from every fighter
The challenger seeks to snatch from Canelo Álvarez the titles of the World Boxing Association (WBA), the World Boxing Council (WBC) and the World Boxing Organization (WBO). During the presentation of the fight in Las Vegas on September 10, Berlanga dared to predict that he would knock down the Mexican champion in the sixth round.
“As for the Canelo team, we always have respect for him, for his achievements and what he did for the sport,” Berlanga told the media on Tuesday, according to Reuters. “I’m going to knock him out in the sixth round. He told me eight rounds, I’ll give him six,” he added.
Following Berlanga’s comments, Canelo responded by saying: “He’s a good fighter. He is strong, young, but he is nothing new to me. I have fought with everyone, with all styles; Older than me, younger than me, older than me. “I know everything about boxing, I have a lot of experience and he will feel it on Saturday night.”
Canelo Álvarez comes into this fight with a record of 61 wins (39 by knockout and technical knockout), 2 losses (both by decision against Floyd Mayweather in 2013 and Dmitry Bivol in 2022) and 2 draws, according to the WBC.
However, the Mexican boxer lost his undisputed status in the 168-pound category in July following the announcement by the International Boxing Federation (IBF) to strip him of his belt for choosing Berlanga as his rival, instead of his mandatory challenger, Cuban William Scull.
In his previous fight, Canelo defeated the Mexican Jaime Munguía by unanimous decision on May 4, 2024.
