Floyd Mayweather and Saul ‘Canelo‘ Alvarez faced off on September 14, 2013 at the MGM Grand, Las Vegas.
The fight – billed as ‘The One’ – saw pound-for-pound king Mayweather take on rising star Canelo for the WBA and WBC Super-Welterweight World Titles.
It generated massive hype and captivated the boxing world, with many believing the Mexican’s youth and power could pose a serious threat to Mayweather’s dominance. That was not to be.
The fight unfolded as a masterclass in defensive boxing by Mayweather. He neutralised Canelo’s aggression on his way to a majority decision victory, though most feel a unanimous call would be much more appropriate.
As a victory for Floyd, it has aged incredibly well. Canelo is now a four-weight world champion who has dominated the super-middleweight ranks for some time and won a belt as high as light-heavy. Many feel a match-up for Mayweather with this more seasoned Alvarez would play out entirely differently.
However, speaking to Bet Online, ‘Money’ dismissed the idea that Canelo wasn’t in his prime when the pair met in the ring. In fact, he believes he was the one at the disadvantage being 36-years-old. Had it happened years earlier, he says he would have scored the knockout.
“Canelo Alvarez is a hell of a fighter. [People talk about] a prime Mayweather vs a prime Canelo. I fought the prime Canelo. I was the older Mayweather fighting the prime Canelo. If it was a prime Mayweather vs a prime Canelo, the fight wouldn’t have gone the distance.”
As for Canelo, he too believes that the outcome would have been different, telling DAZN:
“Simply, it was down to experience. If I compare that Canelo with Canelo today, they are completely different. It’d be a completely different fight now [against Floyd].”
He has taken just one more loss in his campaign, which totals 66 fights so far, and that came against Dmitry Bivol at light-heavyweight.
