By Sam Volz: Canelo Alvarez reveals that his loss last month against Dmitry Bivol “hurt” him, but he plans on getting up and continuing to march forward with his career to achieve “greatness.”
In a move many boxing fans questions, Canelo (57-2-2, 39 KOs) has chosen not to rematch WBA light heavyweight champion Bivol immediately and is taking the trilogy fight against 40-year-old Gennadiy Golovkin on September 17th.
People view that as a sign of weakness when you walk away from a defeat without attempting to avenge it immediately, as we’re seeing with the former four-division world champion Canelo.
As a result, fans have less interest in seeing Canelo’s next fight because his popularity has taken a significant hit with his decision not to face Bivol right away.
Additionally, the rivalry Canelo has with Golovkin (42-1-1, 37 KOs) is no longer appealing to the boxing public because GGG has hurt his career by fighting lesser opposition and not being active enough since 2018 to remain popular.
Golovkin is no longer a guy that fans want to see Canelo fight. The fighters they want the Mexican star to face are David Benavidez, Jermall Charlo, and Artur Beterbiev. In other words, the opposition could send Canelo into retirement or destroy his superstar status.
“When you mention a fighter that is in the position that I am, that takes the risks that I do, that takes the risks of going up in weight, takes the risks of taking challenges when there are none out there for me, I had no reason to do it,” said Canelo during the media roundtable.
“I wanted to build my career, build my history, and when you fight for history, you’re going to have bumps in the road, but that doesn’t mean you’re not going to achieve it, and I’m on that road.
“I’m a very competitive individual, and that won’t stop me from my objective. It was a very tough loss [against Bivol]. It hurt to lose because obviously, no one likes to lose,” Canelo continued. “Life is like that.”
It would be a good idea for Canelo to take the rematch with Bivol this year, assuming he successfully defeats Golovkin on September 17th. Canelo will need to change the way he fights if he’s to beat Golovkin and Bivol, as his fighting style has become too one-dimensional in the last two years.
Canelo is focusing too much on throwing single knockout shots, and he’s no longer throwing combinations. His work rate, which has never been high during his career, has dipped due to his focus on loading up on everything he throws. That will not work for him against Bivol, and probably not Golovkin either.
“You win, and you lose, but in the end, greatness is getting up again and following the road, following the path and getting up stronger than you were before. That’s where I am,” said Canelo.
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