Canelo vs Crawford getting closer..... (wink, wink)

[Master]

I heard the Canelo v Crawford fight is off. Saul must be upset about something.

[Master]

Mexican superstar Saul 'Canelo' Alvarez has agreed a four-fight deal with Saudi Arabia's Riyadh Season to set up a super-fight with American Terence Crawford in September.

Alvarez, 34, will fight in Saudi for the first time in May, before facing Crawford in September and then competing in two more Saudi-organised bouts in 2026.

"The deal is done," Turki Alalshikh, chairman of Saudi Arabia's general entertainment authority, posted on X, external on Thursday.

Four-weight world champion Alvarez, who holds the WBA, WBC and WBO super-middleweight titles, replied, external: "Let's go brother."

Negotiations for the blockbuster Alvarez-Crawford bout had appeared to have broken down earlier on Thursday. It is understood Alvarez was instead in conversations to fight YouTuber-turned-boxer Jake Paul in May in a separate deal.

But Alvarez, who has won 62 of his 66 professional fights, performed a U-turn late on Thursday following further talks with Alalshikh.

Crawford is the first man to have been undisputed in two weight classes.

The 34-year-old – who is the WBA light-middleweight champion – has won all 41 pro bouts, but will be an underdog against the much heavier Alvarez.

"I'm waiting on Canelo in September and going to shock the world in Riyadh Season," Crawford posted on X.

It was on. It was off. A YouTuber was thrown into the mix. But after the high drama of the past 24 hours, a deal for the biggest fight in boxing appears to be done.

Despite the Saudi hold over boxing, Alvarez – a fighter whose popularity transcends the sport - had so far resisted the advances of Alalshkih.

But now Alvarez v Crawford will undoubtedly become boxing's hot topic for the next seven months, one of the most anticipated and discussed bouts in recent history.

Both men are vastly experienced, incredibly talented and generational greats in their own right. The undefeated record lies with Crawford. Yet there is a huge disparity in weight, with Alvarez a fighter who has been a world champion at light-heavyweight and Crawford having to move up two divisions.

IBF champion William Scull is being touted as an opponent for Alvarez in May, giving the Mexican a chance to regain the belt and once again become undisputed at super-middleweight.

Crawford could then be presented with a legacy-defining opportunity to become a three-weight undisputed champion by challenging Alvarez. Unconfirmed reports suggest Alvarez-Crawford could take place in a Saudi-organised card in Las Vegas on 13 September.

The reaction would have been very different if a somewhat absurd Alvarez-Paul fight – which was reportedly going to be streamed on Netflix - had materialised. In his last fight, Paul outpointed a 58-year-old Mike Tyson.

https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/boxing/a...s/cpqlpypxgzdo

[TIC]

sounds like canelo used jake paul to get a better deal from turki, first it was a three fight deal on the table, then the bud fight looked off & the jake fight looked a go, then a last minute four fight deal was offered

[Primo Carnera]

sounds like canelo used jake paul to get a better deal from turki, first it was a three fight deal on the table, then the bud fight looked off & the jake fight looked a go, then a last minute four fight deal was offered

Being genuinely serious, I’m not sure if a 4 fight deal appeals more to Canelo than a 3 fight deal.
I’m struggling to think of 3 guys that Canelo is prepared to fight, let alone 4.

[Master]

sounds like canelo used jake paul to get a better deal from turki, first it was a three fight deal on the table, then the bud fight looked off & the jake fight looked a go, then a last minute four fight deal was offered

Being genuinely serious, I’m not sure if a 4 fight deal appeals more to Canelo than a 3 fight deal.
I’m struggling to think of 3 guys that Canelo is prepared to fight, let alone 4.

Eubank, Hamzah, Crawford, Bivol, Benavidez are being considered.

[TitoFan]

sounds like canelo used jake paul to get a better deal from turki, first it was a three fight deal on the table, then the bud fight looked off & the jake fight looked a go, then a last minute four fight deal was offered

Being genuinely serious, I’m not sure if a 4 fight deal appeals more to Canelo than a 3 fight deal.
I’m struggling to think of 3 guys that Canelo is prepared to fight, let alone 4.

Eubank, Hamzah, Crawford, Bivol, Benavidez are being considered.

Uhh... it's Scull, a guy with all of 9 knockouts in 23 professional fights... and the 147-pounder who didn't carry his power to 154.

Bivol and Benavidez??

Yeah, right. And Mexico's gonna pay for that medieval border wall Trump wants to build.
(wink, wink)

[TIC]

sounds like canelo used jake paul to get a better deal from turki, first it was a three fight deal on the table, then the bud fight looked off & the jake fight looked a go, then a last minute four fight deal was offered

Being genuinely serious, I’m not sure if a 4 fight deal appeals more to Canelo than a 3 fight deal.
I’m struggling to think of 3 guys that Canelo is prepared to fight, let alone 4.

the rumour is the deal is worth around five hundred million. william scull will probably be first in may, bud next is september & then we'll have to wait & see after that

[Primo Carnera]

sounds like canelo used jake paul to get a better deal from turki, first it was a three fight deal on the table, then the bud fight looked off & the jake fight looked a go, then a last minute four fight deal was offered

Being genuinely serious, I’m not sure if a 4 fight deal appeals more to Canelo than a 3 fight deal.
I’m struggling to think of 3 guys that Canelo is prepared to fight, let alone 4.

the rumour is the deal is worth around five hundred million. william scull will probably be first in may, bud next is september & then we'll have to wait & see after that

This isn’t a dig at you because you’ve just come up with the info, which I appreciate. But that is shit value for money. After Scull (personally no problem with the fight). and Crawford , (again personal opinion ,not a fan of this fight, but plenty are) if there is no Bivol, Beterbiev or Benavidez, I can’t see who else is a worthy challenge for that money.
I’d be intrigued on yours , and anybody else’s thoughts on who the 3rd and 4th fights in the deal could be. Perhaps I should start a thread. Like I said, not having a dig at you, just curious.

[TitoFan]

Yeah hey... I can appreciate the love fest, but as usual I'll be the outlier here. I do have a problem with Scull. Ok, he's a title holder. Other than that, anyone take a look at his resume? Oh I forgot... that's taboo. We can call out shit on some occasions, just not others. How convenient to have a layup like Scull holding the other 168-pound belt.

Then comes a bloated Crawford, the ultimate challenge for Canelo.

Of course the Bivols and Beterbievs of the world will be given lip service. It would look bad if they weren't at least mentioned. But by that time Canelo's age will come up as an excuse, and the 4-fight farewell tour will be magically truncated to 2 fights.

Everyone else can ride the circus train if they want. I'll enjoy the view from the cheap seats.

[TIC]

sounds like canelo used jake paul to get a better deal from turki, first it was a three fight deal on the table, then the bud fight looked off & the jake fight looked a go, then a last minute four fight deal was offered

Being genuinely serious, I’m not sure if a 4 fight deal appeals more to Canelo than a 3 fight deal.
I’m struggling to think of 3 guys that Canelo is prepared to fight, let alone 4.

the rumour is the deal is worth around five hundred million. william scull will probably be first in may, bud next is september & then we'll have to wait & see after that

This isn’t a dig at you because you’ve just come up with the info, which I appreciate. But that is shit value for money. After Scull (personally no problem with the fight). and Crawford , (again personal opinion ,not a fan of this fight, but plenty are) if there is no Bivol, Beterbiev or Benavidez, I can’t see who else is a worthy challenge for that money.
I’d be intrigued on yours , and anybody else’s thoughts on who the 3rd and 4th fights in the deal could be. Perhaps I should start a thread. Like I said, not having a dig at you, just curious.

i'm not sure turki & the saudi's are at the point yet where they are worried about losing money. i could be wrong but i doubt they've turned a profit on any card they've put on yet. & if by some chance they have, it was lost on other cards. for the saudi's this is mainly pr work. turki might have long term interests in the sport but like the other sports they are picking up, i personally feel it's the novelty & added promotion of their nation. i say all that to highlight that there is a host of fighters that turki & canelo can bring out. as master mentioned chris eubank jr & hamzah sheeraz names have been brought up, jermall is still around, conor mcgregor wouldn't surprise me & if jake still wants to work with them who knows. we've seen turki happy to make tyson fury v francis ngannou so circus fights won't surprise me. i don't think the saudi's are interested in quality for their buck. if it was my money i would have done william scull in may to unify, because the artur v dmitry winner probably needs to defend the ibf or get stripped. christian mbilli, then the winner of artur v dmitry two after they defended the ibf so it would be undisputed v undisputed & david b as the final fight of the four but that's trying to take into account some of the boxing politics. taking out the politics & my money on the line i'm doing christian mbilli, david b, artur v dmitry winner & finally jai