Canelo Alvarez
Santos Saúl Álvarez Barragán (Spanish pronunciation born July 18, 1990), commonly known as El Canelo, from canela, Spanish for cinnamon, in reference to his red hair; is a Mexican professional boxer in the Light Middleweight division. He is the former WBC, WBA, and Ring Magazine Light Middleweight Champion. He is promoted by Oscar De La Hoya's Golden Boy Promotions.In an interview, Álvarez explained that he was born in the city of Guadalajara, Jalisco, but his family was at the time living in San Agustín de Tlajomulco de Zúñiga. At the age of five, his family moved to their current home of Juanacatlán, Jalisco. Growing up on his family's farm, he learned horseback riding, which he continues today. Álvarez is the youngest of eight children, seven of them boys; all of his brothers also became professional boxers. Among his brothers are welterweight boxers Ramon Álvarez, Ricardo Álvarez and former Interim WBA World Champion, Rigoberto Álvarez.
Personal life
Álvarez was engaged to 30-year-old Marisol González, who is Miss Mexico Universe 2003 and a sports reporter for Televisa Deportes. He has one daughter that he had with a former girlfriend.
Amateur career
Álvarez started boxing at 13 years old, after watching his older brother Rigoberto Álvarez's debut as a professional boxer. In 2004 he won the silver medal at the Junior Mexican National championships, held in Sinaloa. He became the 2005 Junior Mexican National Boxing Champion in Tuxtla Gutierrez, Chiapas, at the age of 15. Even though Álvarez turned pro young, he had 20 amateur bouts.
Professional career
Álvarez turned professional at 15, shortly after his championship at the Junior Nationals, because his trainers at the time, father-and-son team Chepo and Eddy Reynoso, were unable to find suitable junior opponents for him. In his first 19 months as a professional, he knocked out 11 of his 13 documented opponents, all of whom were significantly older. However, the elder Reynoso stated in 2013 that Álvarez had fought 10 more times in that span, winning all 10 by knockout, but that these fights (all in small venues in the Mexican state of Nayarit) were so poorly documented that it was not worth the trouble to seek to have the record corrected.
Álvarez' third official bout of his career was a win over the now current IBF Lightweight Champion, Miguel Vázquez on January 20, 2006, at his home town of Guadalajara, Jalisco. On June 28, 2008, Álvarez defeated Miguel Vázquez again in a rematch. He also made world history in that fight card when all of his six brothers fought on the same night, Canelo being the youngest. The only downside was that three of them failed to win their pro debuts. The other four more experienced brothers won. On March 6, 2010, he got a crushing third round knockout over Brian Camechis in Tuxtla Gutiérrez, Chiapas. Álvarez defeated Jose Miguel Cotto on May 1, 2010, on the Floyd Mayweather vs. Shane Mosley undercard in the MGM Grand Garden Arena on HBO PPV to retain his NABF Welterweight title.
Álvarez' third official bout of his career was a win over the now current IBF Lightweight Champion, Miguel Vázquez on January 20, 2006, at his home town of Guadalajara, Jalisco. On June 28, 2008, Álvarez defeated Miguel Vázquez again in a rematch. He also made world history in that fight card when all of his six brothers fought on the same night, Canelo being the youngest. The only downside was that three of them failed to win their pro debuts. The other four more experienced brothers won. On March 6, 2010, he got a crushing third round knockout over Brian Camechis in Tuxtla Gutiérrez, Chiapas. Álvarez defeated Jose Miguel Cotto on May 1, 2010, on the Floyd Mayweather vs. Shane Mosley undercard in the MGM Grand Garden Arena on HBO PPV to retain his NABF Welterweight title.
Light Middleweight
His sixth round TKO win over Luciano Leonel Cuello for the WBC Silver Light Middleweight bout was held in the Vicente Fernández Arena. During the post fight interview Mexican singer Vicente Fernández gave Álvarez a horse. He was also given a horse by the mayor of Tepic, where Alvarez sometimes trains.
He next fought against the former WBC Welterweight Champion Carlos Baldomir at the Staples Center in Los Angeles, California, on the Shane Mosley vs. Sergio Mora undercard. Baldomir stated in a pre-fight interview that he wants the winner of Mora vs. Mosley, as he said "after I knock out El Canelo." Baldomir weighed in at 153.4 pounds for the bout, that was contracted for 151 pounds. In California, if a fighter is overweight he is penalized 20 percent of his purse and that percent is given to the other fighter. However Álvarez declined to take the extra $12,000 from Baldomir. In the 6th round Alvarez landed a crushing blow that knocked Baldomir out cold. Álvarez is the only one to knock Baldomir out and is only the second boxer ever to stop Carlos Baldomir. Álvarez successfully defended his Light Middleweight title unanimously versus former world champion Lovemore N'dou in Veracruz. It was a competitive fight despite the wide margins on the official scorecards of 120-108 (twice) and 119-109.
He next fought against the former WBC Welterweight Champion Carlos Baldomir at the Staples Center in Los Angeles, California, on the Shane Mosley vs. Sergio Mora undercard. Baldomir stated in a pre-fight interview that he wants the winner of Mora vs. Mosley, as he said "after I knock out El Canelo." Baldomir weighed in at 153.4 pounds for the bout, that was contracted for 151 pounds. In California, if a fighter is overweight he is penalized 20 percent of his purse and that percent is given to the other fighter. However Álvarez declined to take the extra $12,000 from Baldomir. In the 6th round Alvarez landed a crushing blow that knocked Baldomir out cold. Álvarez is the only one to knock Baldomir out and is only the second boxer ever to stop Carlos Baldomir. Álvarez successfully defended his Light Middleweight title unanimously versus former world champion Lovemore N'dou in Veracruz. It was a competitive fight despite the wide margins on the official scorecards of 120-108 (twice) and 119-109.
Light Middleweight title
On March 5, 2011, Álvarez defeated EBU Welterweight Champion Matthew Hatton by unanimous decision, for the vacant WBC Light Middleweight belt. The bout was televised on HBO and took place at the Honda Center in Anaheim, California. Alvarez was deducted a point in the seventh round for hitting after the break. All three ringside judges scored the bout at 119-108 in favor of Alvarez. He lost 1 point for an illegal punch in the seventh round, which was uniformly scored 9-9. Alvarez landed 47% of his 626 punches, including 53% of his power shots, while Hatton connected with just 25% of his 546 total blows.
Álvarez successfully defended his newly awarded WBC Light Middleweight title against the Ring #4 ranked Super Welterweight and current EBU Light Middleweight Champion, Ryan Rhodes. Álvarez defeated Rhodes by a technical knockout victory in the twelfth round on June 18, 2011, in Guadalajara, Jalisco.
On 17 September 2011, Álvarez successfully defended his title with a TKO in Round 6 over The Contender competitor Alfonso Gomez at the Staples Center, Los Angeles, winning by technical knockout victory in the sixth round. Álvarez got a knockdown in Round 1, but there were a couple cautious rounds that left Gomez win the majority of the first five rounds. Álvarez was looking for one shot and got it in the sixth round. He backed up Gomez with a right hand and followed up with a flurry to get the referee to jump in and stop the fight.
Alvarez defeated Kermit Cintron in the 5th round by TKO. Alvarez spent the first three rounds feeling out Cintron, a former Welterweight Champion, before punishing the Puerto Rican with body shots and straight right hands in the fourth round. He knocked Cintron down once and had him in trouble at the end of the round, but Cintron was saved by the bell. In the fifth round, Cintron came out and caught Álvarez with some combinations, but Alvarez eventually overpowered him with several powerful straight right hands, and the referee stepped in and stopped it.
Richard Schaefer announced that Álvarez's next bout on May 5, 2012, on the undercard of Miguel Cotto's clash with Floyd Mayweather Jr. at the MGM Grand Garden Arena, and co- featured, on Cinco De Mayo. On February 11, Shane Mosley was announced as Álvarez's next opponent on May for his WBC Light Middleweight title. Alvarez defeated Mosley after 12 rounds via unanimous decision.
Álvarez was originally set to fight Ring Top 10 Super Welterweight, and former Welterweight Champion, Paul Williams on September 15, 2012. However, on May 27, 2012, a motorcycle accident in the U.S. state of Georgia paralyzed Williams from the waist down, ending his boxing career. Álvarez's possible opponents for his September bout were James Kirkland, Austin Trout, Delvin Rodriguez and most notably, Victor Ortiz.
Álvarez was scheduled to defend his title against former welterweight titlist Victor Ortiz in the main event of a Showtime PPV card dubbed "Knockout Kings" from the MGM Grand Garden Arena. However, Ortiz was unable to defeat underdog Josesito Lopez in what was supposed to be a "tune-up" fight on June 23 at the Staples Center in Los Angeles, losing due to referee stoppage (broken jaw) and cancelling his bout with Alvarez.
Due to this upset, Lopez was penciled in to face Canelo at the MGM Grand on the September 15th date, to challenge for Saul's WBC Light Middleweight title. Alvarez won the fight via fifth round technical knockout after dominating Lopez from start to finish to stay undefeated and increase his record of 41-0.
Álvarez successfully defended his newly awarded WBC Light Middleweight title against the Ring #4 ranked Super Welterweight and current EBU Light Middleweight Champion, Ryan Rhodes. Álvarez defeated Rhodes by a technical knockout victory in the twelfth round on June 18, 2011, in Guadalajara, Jalisco.
On 17 September 2011, Álvarez successfully defended his title with a TKO in Round 6 over The Contender competitor Alfonso Gomez at the Staples Center, Los Angeles, winning by technical knockout victory in the sixth round. Álvarez got a knockdown in Round 1, but there were a couple cautious rounds that left Gomez win the majority of the first five rounds. Álvarez was looking for one shot and got it in the sixth round. He backed up Gomez with a right hand and followed up with a flurry to get the referee to jump in and stop the fight.
Alvarez defeated Kermit Cintron in the 5th round by TKO. Alvarez spent the first three rounds feeling out Cintron, a former Welterweight Champion, before punishing the Puerto Rican with body shots and straight right hands in the fourth round. He knocked Cintron down once and had him in trouble at the end of the round, but Cintron was saved by the bell. In the fifth round, Cintron came out and caught Álvarez with some combinations, but Alvarez eventually overpowered him with several powerful straight right hands, and the referee stepped in and stopped it.
Richard Schaefer announced that Álvarez's next bout on May 5, 2012, on the undercard of Miguel Cotto's clash with Floyd Mayweather Jr. at the MGM Grand Garden Arena, and co- featured, on Cinco De Mayo. On February 11, Shane Mosley was announced as Álvarez's next opponent on May for his WBC Light Middleweight title. Alvarez defeated Mosley after 12 rounds via unanimous decision.
Álvarez was originally set to fight Ring Top 10 Super Welterweight, and former Welterweight Champion, Paul Williams on September 15, 2012. However, on May 27, 2012, a motorcycle accident in the U.S. state of Georgia paralyzed Williams from the waist down, ending his boxing career. Álvarez's possible opponents for his September bout were James Kirkland, Austin Trout, Delvin Rodriguez and most notably, Victor Ortiz.
Álvarez was scheduled to defend his title against former welterweight titlist Victor Ortiz in the main event of a Showtime PPV card dubbed "Knockout Kings" from the MGM Grand Garden Arena. However, Ortiz was unable to defeat underdog Josesito Lopez in what was supposed to be a "tune-up" fight on June 23 at the Staples Center in Los Angeles, losing due to referee stoppage (broken jaw) and cancelling his bout with Alvarez.
Due to this upset, Lopez was penciled in to face Canelo at the MGM Grand on the September 15th date, to challenge for Saul's WBC Light Middleweight title. Alvarez won the fight via fifth round technical knockout after dominating Lopez from start to finish to stay undefeated and increase his record of 41-0.
Álvarez vs. Trout
His next fight took place on April 20, 2013 at the Alamodome in San Antonio, Texas. The fight was supposed to take place during Cinco de Mayo weekend as the co-main event of the Floyd Mayweather Jr. bout against Robert Guerrero; however, due to a contract disagreement between Alvarez and Mayweather regarding their potential fight on September 14, 2013, Alvarez opted to headline his own card. Alvarez successfully defended his WBC Light Middleweight title and won the WBA & the vacant The Ring Magazine Light Middleweight title.
During the first rounds, Trout seemed to have a good game plan; however, after the third round, it was Alvarez's power that took over, eventually scoring a knockdown on the seventh round to give Trout the first knockdown of his career. The fight was closer than expected, but Alvarez still managed to dominate Trout throughout the fight with impressive head movement and shocking power. All three judges scorecards were in favor of Alvarez with a fair margin (115-112, 116-111 and 118-109). Although the last score card (118-109) created controversy, the majority of sport analysts had Alvarez winning by at least 2 points. Immediately after the bout, Trout stated that he hadn't underestimated Alvarez but that he trained to fight a completely different fighter.
During the first rounds, Trout seemed to have a good game plan; however, after the third round, it was Alvarez's power that took over, eventually scoring a knockdown on the seventh round to give Trout the first knockdown of his career. The fight was closer than expected, but Alvarez still managed to dominate Trout throughout the fight with impressive head movement and shocking power. All three judges scorecards were in favor of Alvarez with a fair margin (115-112, 116-111 and 118-109). Although the last score card (118-109) created controversy, the majority of sport analysts had Alvarez winning by at least 2 points. Immediately after the bout, Trout stated that he hadn't underestimated Alvarez but that he trained to fight a completely different fighter.
Álvarez vs. Mayweather
Main article: Floyd Mayweather vs. Saúl Álvarez
Álvarez, The Ring Magazine's no. 1 rated Light Middleweight and unified WBC/WBA "regular" Light Middleweight Champion, fought against The Ring Magazine's no. 1 pound for pound fighter, WBA super welterweight champion and WBC/The Ring Magazine Welterweight Champion, Floyd Mayweather Jr., on September 14, 2013.
Mayweather holds a world title at welterweight (147 pounds), but he also still owns a junior middleweight title (154), which he won by outpointing Miguel Cotto in May 2012. And he is moving back up in weight to face Alvarez with their belts on the line, although the fight was contested at a catchweight of 152 pounds. The titles disputed were Alvarez's WBC, WBA "regular" & The Ring Light Middleweight titles, and Mayweather's WBA "super" Light Middleweight title.
Mayweather defeated Alvarez by majority twelve round decision. In a fight that many thought was going to be Floyd Mayweather's toughest, he outclassed the younger Alvarez. Many observers at ringside thought Mayweather won all twelve rounds.
Álvarez, The Ring Magazine's no. 1 rated Light Middleweight and unified WBC/WBA "regular" Light Middleweight Champion, fought against The Ring Magazine's no. 1 pound for pound fighter, WBA super welterweight champion and WBC/The Ring Magazine Welterweight Champion, Floyd Mayweather Jr., on September 14, 2013.
Mayweather holds a world title at welterweight (147 pounds), but he also still owns a junior middleweight title (154), which he won by outpointing Miguel Cotto in May 2012. And he is moving back up in weight to face Alvarez with their belts on the line, although the fight was contested at a catchweight of 152 pounds. The titles disputed were Alvarez's WBC, WBA "regular" & The Ring Light Middleweight titles, and Mayweather's WBA "super" Light Middleweight title.
Mayweather defeated Alvarez by majority twelve round decision. In a fight that many thought was going to be Floyd Mayweather's toughest, he outclassed the younger Alvarez. Many observers at ringside thought Mayweather won all twelve rounds.
Álvarez vs Angulo
Álvarez fought Alfredo "el perro" Angulo on March 8, 2014 in a fight labeled as "Toe to Toe". Álvarez stopped Angulo on round 10 in a fairly lopsided beating.
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