Mexican boxing icon Canelo Alvarez could soon find himself presented with a golden opportunity to avenge one of the only blemishes on his storied professional record. While the multi-division world champion is currently preparing for his next immediate challenge in the ring, recent developments in the light-heavyweight division have opened the door for a high-stakes rematch that boxing fans have speculated about for years.
Alvarez, a modern legend of the sport, has tasted defeat only three times across a glittering career that has seen him conquer multiple weight classes and cement his legacy among the all-time greats. His very first professional setback came back in 2013, when he was decisively outboxed by the defensive masterclass of Floyd Mayweather Jr. In a bout that exposed the tactical limitations of a younger Alvarez, the Mexican star was comprehensively beaten, though that reality was absurdly obscured by judge CJ Ross’s infamous and widely ridiculed 114-114 scorecard.
Rather than letting that setback derail his trajectory, the Guadalajara-born sensation bounced back with remarkable resilience. He evolved into boxing’s premier pay-per-view attraction, developing into a four-division world champion and eventually unifying the entire super-middleweight division to become the undisputed king at 168 pounds. For nearly a decade following the Mayweather loss, Alvarez was virtually untouchable, until he stepped up in weight to challenge Dmitry Bivol in 2022, suffering a clear and decisive points defeat to the Russian technician.
In the wake of that tactical loss, Canelo returned to his comfort zone at 168 pounds, immediately reasserting his dominance by once again capturing all four major world titles in the super-middleweight division. However, the landscape of boxing is perpetually shifting, and he later lost those coveted belts to Terence Crawford last September. Undeterred by the setback, Alvarez has turned his immediate attention back to the grind of the 168-pound division, where he is scheduled to challenge Christian Mbilli for the WBC super-middleweight marble at the very end of the month.
While his current focus is understandably locked on reclaiming his foothold at the summit of the super-middleweight scene, a massive door has been left ajar by his former conqueror. Dmitry Bivol has recently come forward to offer his Mexican rival a long-awaited path to vengeance. Not only would a prospective second encounter offer Alvarez a chance to settle the score, but it would also carry the immense stakes of the unified light-heavyweight world titles. Bivol openly listed Alvarez as one of his prime targets moving forward during a detailed and revealing interview with Inside The Ring.
Outlining his ambitions and the bouts that currently motivate him, Bivol made it clear where his priorities lie in the talent-rich upper weight classes. Addressing the landscape of his division, Bivol noted that specific fights stand out as monumental occasions for both his legacy and the sport at large. He explained that a trilogy bout against Artur Beterbiev, a clash with Canelo Alvarez, and a showdown with David Benavidez represent the three biggest and most significant fights for him at this stage of his career.
Much like his Mexican rival, Bivol finds himself with business to attend to before the calendar year draws to a close. The undefeated light-heavyweight standout has a high-stakes title defense lined up that will test his credentials once again. Bivol is scheduled to put his three prestigious 175-pound world belts on the line against Callum Smith, a familiar name to boxing fans and a former opponent of Canelo Alvarez. That pivotal championship clash is set to take place on Saturday, December 12, in Yekaterinburg, Russia, setting up a potentially explosive end to the boxing year for the light-heavyweight division and indirectly shaping the future landscape for fighters like Alvarez who loom large in the division’s peripheral vision.
