The Biggest Saul ‘Canelo’ Alvarez Career Highlights Ranked

Saul ‘Canelo’ Alvarez is one of the biggest stars in boxing today. From turning pro as a 15-year-old in 2005 to the four-weight world champion he is today, the boxer from Guadalajara, Mexico, has crammed a lot into his 64-fight career so far. Along the way, he has had many more positive moments than negative ones.

For this piece, I have selected ten Canelo career highlights and attempted to rank them from 10th to 1st.

10. May 6, 2023 – vs. John Ryder – Homecoming fight

Far from the most illustrious bout on Canelo’s resume, I still think this one will hold some importance to the fighter when he looks back on his career. After 11 years fighting away from home, he returned to Mexico, his home state of Jalisco no less, to defend his undisputed super middleweight status in front of a sold-out crowd at Estadio Akron in Zapopan.

9. May 1, 2010 – vs. Jose Miguel Cotto – First fight in Las Vegas

Canelo vs. JM Cotto was the chief support to Floyd Mayweather against Shane Mosley. It was a prominent spot on a high-profile card for the then 32-0-1 Canelo. Cotto himself came in at 31-1-1, and a competitive fight ensued before Canelo stopped Cotto in round nine of the ten-round contest. Vegas liked what it saw. Canelo would be back many more times in the years that followed.

8. September 15, 2012 – vs. Josesito Lopez – First time headlining in Las Vegas

Two years after his first bout in Vegas, Canelo was headlining at the MGM Grand while making the fifth defense of his WBC light middleweight title. 30-4 Lopez was no match for Canelo on the night and was stopped in round five. Daniel Ponce De Leon, Leo Santa Cruz, and Marcos Maidana all boxed on Canelo’s undercard.

7. March 5, 2011 – vs. Matthew Hatton – Winning first world title

The Honda Center in Anaheim, California, was the venue as Canelo tasted world title glory for the first time. The vacant WBC light middleweight title was up for grabs, and Canelo won every round in a dominating performance against England’s Hatton to become a world champion.

6. September 14, 2013 – vs. Floyd Mayweather – First defeat but learned so much

You may think it strange to highlight a defeat, but Canelo’s experience against Mayweather made him the fighter and negotiator he became very quickly after this. Headlining a gigantic event against an all-time great was an education for the then 22-year-old Canelo.

The fight was a box office success, with Yahoo reporting over two million PPV sales and revenue in excess of $150 million. Moving forward, he would know how to dominate the A-side of the negotiation process, and of course, he would soon take over from Mayweather as boxing’s highest earner once Floyd vacated the sport in 2015.

5. September 17, 2016 – vs. Liam Smith – First time in a huge NFL stadium

Although he had previously fought outdoors in a baseball arena, Canelo’s 2016 bout with Liam Smith felt bigger as the venue was the Dallas Cowboys Stadium – one of the biggest in the world. By this point, Canelo was a two-weight world champion, quickly ascending to the top of boxing’s most marketable list. Canelo KO’d Smith in the ninth round, and the announced attendance of over 51,000 left everyone feeling like a winner.

4. November 2, 2019 – vs. Sergey Kovalev – Becoming a four-weight world champion

Canelo quickly visited the light-heavyweight division to relieve 34-3-1 Sergey Kovalev of his WBO 175-pound world title. The fight wasn’t a classic, but Canelo took his time and stopped a tiring Kovalev in the 11th round. It’s a nice addition to his collection of belts.

3. November 21, 2015 – vs. Miguel Cotto – winning a title at middleweight

Canelo became a two-weight world champion on this date by defeating a legendary fighter from the era that just preceded his. Cotto gave a good account of himself against the naturally bigger and younger Canelo. The fight was much closer than the cards reflected, but after 12 rounds, Canelo rightly raised his arm and was crowned a two-division champion.

2. Various dates – three opponents – quickly becoming undisputed super middleweight champion

Eleven months was all it took for Canelo to clean up the 168-pound division. In December 2020, he took care of undefeated Callum Smith by unanimous decision to capture two of the alphabet titles. In May 2021, another undefeated fighter fell to Canelo and surrendered his portion of the 168-pound treasure to the Mexican. Billy Joe Saunders retired after eight rounds – his right orbital bone shattered.

Canelo completed the super middleweight puzzle by stopping Caleb Plant, also undefeated to that point, in November 2021 in the 11th round of their Las Vegas battle. Canelo had quickly become the undisputed king at super middleweight.

1. Various dates – three bouts – cementing himself as boxing’s number one attraction

Floyd Mayweather had hung up his gloves, and there was a void to be filled. Who would become the fighter who bagged the lucrative Cinco De Mayo and Mexican Independence Weekend dates in May and September that Mayweather had monopolized. Canelo was that fighter.

In May 2017, he headlined at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas against compatriot Julio Cesar Chavez Jr. Four months later, he was back in the same building for a September showdown with rival Gennady ‘GGG’ Golovkin. An injury kept Canelo away the following May, but in September 2018, he was back at T-Mobile for a rematch with GGG. The record shows Canelo won two and drew one of those encounters. The finances dictated that he had become boxing’s number one cash cow.

Colin Morrison

A boxing fan since his teenage years, Morrison began writing about the sport in July 2016. He appreciates all styles of boxing and has nothing but respect for those who get in the ring for our entertainment. Morrison is from Scotland and can be found on Twitter @Morrie1981.

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