Canelo Alvarez vs Terrence Crawford - Fight preview, predictions, breakdown and more

By Lourence Alturino

Image from Allegiant Stadium

Canelo Alvarez. Terrence Crawford. Two of the greatest boxers of our generation are set to clash in the biggest fight of the decade. At Allegiant Stadium in Las Vegas, we will get an answer to the age-old question: if every fighter were the same weight, who would be the best?

It's a pound-for-pound test like never before. It's the modern-day Sugar Ray Leonard vs Marvin Hagler. Both legends are in their own right, but when the dust settles, whose legacy gets pushed further? Who walks out of Sin City the undisputed super middleweight champion?

Canelo Álvarez (63-2-2, 39 KOs)

Image from MMAFighting

Accomplishments:

• Current undisputed supermiddleweight champion (168 lbs)

• Former WBA light heavyweight champion (175 lbs)

• Former WBC and WBA middlweight champion (160 lbs)

• Former WBO junior middleweight champion (154 lbs)

Notable wins:

• Gennadiy Golovkin 2x

• Miguel Cotto

• Shane Mosley

• Billy Joe Saunders

• Caleb Plant

You know the name. Canelo Álvarez is the face of boxing and the former #1 pound-for-pound fighter in the world. Canelo is a fierce power puncher, ready to walk you down, while also being an elite counterpuncher. A master in head movement and has one of the strongest chins in the sport. In nearly 70 professional fights, Canelo has yet to touch the canvas.

Canelo is one of the most feared men in boxing due to his ability to break you apart as the fight goes on. He loves throwing strong overhands with relentless attacks to the body. His power will be the biggest X-factor in this fight. Canelo's aggression hasn't been evident in recent efforts, but with the magnitude of this fight, the Mexican-born champion will surely return to his roots.

Keys for Canelo:

• Push Crawford to the ropes

• Cut off the ring effectively

• Show why size matters

• Utilize heavy feints

• Attack the body

It's no secret that Canelo is going to have the "size" advantage in this fight. He's supposed to be the bigger guy. Canelo needs to show off his size. The power needs to be felt early on and Crawford's ability to take such power will be what determines the outcome of this fight. Jermell Charlo, an undisputed champion in his own right, felt the power of Canelo and decided to take a business day. Crawford certainly has more pride than that, but that's the fear that Canelo instills in his opposition, and that's what he's going to need Crawford to feel.

As seen against William Scull, Canelo wasn't able to be as sharp as usual and it was a snoozefest. Of course, it takes two to tango and Scull ran the whole fight, but Canelo was unable to cut off the ring and let Scull roam free. This cannot happen against Crawford whatsoever. Canelo has to continuously move forward behind the jab and constant feints, cut off Crawford's exit angles and fire away with intention when Crawford's back is against the ropes. Speaking of which, Canelo's jab has to be on point to keep Crawford guessing, and as Crawford is processing the jab, there comes the patented Canelo overhand.

Canelo is one of the best at attacking the body and when Crawford is backed up, Canelo needs to punish him in all areas. Canelo also loves to attack his opponent's arms. Therefore, Canelo needs to break Crawford piece by piece on the way to victory.

Terence "Bud" Crawford (41-0, 31 KOs)

Image from EvolveMMA

Accomplishments:

• Current WBA junior middlweight champion (154 lbs)

• Former undisputed welterweight champion (147 lbs)

• Former undisputed junior welterweight champion (140 lbs)

• Former WBO lightweight champion (135 lbs)

Notable wins:

• Errol Spence Jr.

• Shawn Porter

• Yuriokis Gamboa

• Viktor Postol

• Israil Madrimov

Terence "Bud" Crawford is the former pound-for-pound king and the first man in the four-belt era to be undisputed in two separate weight divisions. That achievement alone puts Crawford in the upper echelon of elite fighters. However, what stands in front of him on Saturday night is his biggest test to date. Crawford is moving up two weight classes to chase greatness. That drastic jump in weight is simply unheard of in this era of boxing.

The biggest question going in is, can Crawford handle Canelo's power? Despite fighting in lower weight classes, Crawford is a naturally big guy, but he's never fought at this weight and has never felt the weight of the punch at these bigger divisions. Crawford is a complete fighter with the ability to switch stances, is a supreme counterpuncher, and the most dangerous finisher in the sport. If there is any man built for this challenge, it's Terence Crawford.

Keys for Crawford:

• Attack Canelo's high guard

• Keep the lead hand active

• Attack as Canelo disengages

• Catch and shoot counters

• Don't brawl with Canelo

Canelo is notorious for fighting with an active high guard as he trots forward, so Crawford needs to disable this with combinations. With the high guard, shots around the guard and up the middle are open. Canelo is too defensively aware to be able to avoid said shots, but Crawford attacking this position should be enough to break Canelo's rhythm.

Crawford has one of, if not the best jab in boxing, so keeping that lead hand active can freeze Canelo, where Crawford can then build off of that. Canelo is prone to disengaging when out of range, so that leaves plenty of opportunities for Crawford to strike. Canelo sits down on a lot of his punches, leaving him in vulnerable positions, which is perfect for a counterpuncher like Crawford to take advantage.

There's probably not a boxer on the planet better at brawling than Bud Crawford. However, Crawford should not be brawling in this fight, especially at this weight class and especially not against someone as powerful as Canelo. Crawford is susceptible to getting caught and hurt in these exchanges, like against Gamboa, for example. That was at 135 lbs; super middleweight is a whole new stratosphere compared to that. Crawford needs to be patient and has to fight the absolute perfect fight in order to defy the odds.

Breakdown

Image from Yahoo Sports UK

Both fighters are known to be slow starters, taking the early rounds to calculate and dissect their opponent. For both men, they need to get the respect of the other immediately. Canelo needs to demonstrate his power and Crawford has to show that he's not going to back down. I think Crawford is going to take the lead early in rounds 1-4, catching Canelo with clean counters and frustrating Canelo.

As we enter rounds 5-9, Canelo will start stepping on the gas and take over. Crawford will still have his moments, but Canelo will effectively walk him down and start to punish Bud. In rounds 10-12, Crawford will have figured out Canelo's timing and outbox Canelo to finish the fight.

Crawford's ability to switch stances has been a point of emphasis from the outside; however, I think Crawford mainly stays in southpaw throughout the fight. Crawford looks better in that stance and he's shown in orthodox that he can get caught in the big trades. If Canelo can force Bud to switch to orthodox, that could work heavily in his favor.

Of all the outcomes this fight can have, the one thing I cannot see happening is Crawford stopping Canelo. I don't doubt that Crawford's power will transfer to 168, but Canelo is practically impossible to even stagger, let alone knock down. Canelo really hasn't been hurt since Jose Cotto in 2010. If GGG can't knock down Canelo, Crawford will not. However, I can see Canelo stopping Bud. Bud has been hurt before and Canelo could be the man to break Crawford.

Official Prediction

Image from ESPN

My mind has circled, going back and forth on who to pick. I've gone through thousands of scenarios in my head. It's such a close call that I would feel stupid not going for the other guy. When this fight was first talked about, I thought it was clearly going to be Canelo and that Crawford was crazy for even entertaining this.

In a fight that is so 50/50, I have to go for the guy that I think is more skilled and that's Bud. If you break it down by categories, Crawford is going to have the edge in most of them. Canelo's size is worrisome, and he could definitely walk Crawford down and hurt him badly. However, I believe Crawford is going to stifle Canelo with his jab and land clean counters all night. It's hard to get a decision over Canelo; you truly have to beat him to get the nod from the judges. In what should be an impossible feat, I think if there is any man who could pull this off, it would be Terence "Bud" Crawford.

Official Prediction: Terence Crawford via decision

This is a once-in-a-lifetime fight. When that bell rings, time will freeze. The best fighting the best, it's something that is rare in this sport. We do not get this type of fight often. It's the ultimate chess match and I could not be more excited to see what transpires. If Canelo Álvarez wins, his legacy is further cemented as one of the greatest of all time. If Terence Crawford wins, he will easily be a top 10, maybe even circling the top 5 all-time. Whatever happens, it's going to be a magical night, and we will never forget where we were when this fight went down.