Undisputed super middleweight champion Canelo Alvarez (60-2-2, 39 KOs) appears to have decided to face Jermall Charlo and then Terence Crawford in his two fights in 2024, according to Salvador Rodriguez of ESPN.
If Salvador’s report is accurate, Canelo will have two big fights on Amazon Prime Video PPV this year on May 4th and September 14th.
Charlo First, Crawford Next
“Everything looks like it would be [Jermall] Charlo & Crawford for Canelo in 2024, in that order,” said Salvador Rodriguez on X, talking about Canelo Alvarez’s two fights this year in May and September.
The highly rated pound-for-pound star, Crawford, must move up three weight divisions to challenge Canelo for his undisputed super middleweight championship.
Terence hasn’t fought at 168 before, so this will be a new experience for him, and we’ll see how well he holds up under the firepower from Canelo.
Crawford has got to be overjoyed with this news, as he’s getting a massive payday fighting Canelo at the perfect time in his career following his big win over Errol Spence Jr. last July.
Benavidez Left Empty-handed
Fans of the unbeaten David Benavidez won’t be too happy about this because they were hoping he’d be Canelo’s opponent for September on the Mexican Independence Day holiday.
Benavidez and his dad, Jose Sr., have been working hard, talking up a fight with Canelo, but what may have hurt their chances, besides all the complaining and bad-mouthing they’ve done, is the lack of A-level opposition.
If Benavidez had accepted David Morrell Jr.’s challenge or moved up to take on Artur Beterbiev at 175, he’d likely have been getting the shot against Canelo for September. That’s how it is in life. You don’t take the risks; you’re left with nothing.
It’s time for Benavidez to understand there’s nothing for him here, and he needs to go in another direction, preferably North to 175.
Instead, Benavidez has played it safe, fighting Caleb Plant and the old-timer, Demetrius Andrade. Perhaps the clincher was the reported 70K PPV buys that Benavidez’s fight on Showtime PPV drew against Andrade last November
. With numbers that poor, Benavidez was up the creek without a paddle and in sorry shape to get chosen by Canelo for September.