Canelo vs Crawford fight live: Latest boxing results and reaction as ‘Bud’ produces all-time great victory
Terence Crawford outpointed Canelo Alvarez to land the undisputed titles at 168 pounds in one of the biggest fights of the century
Terence Crawford produced a spectacular and historic win over Canelo Alvarez to become the new undisputed super-middleweight world champion in a claim to be the definitive fighter of a generation.
Billed as one of the biggest fights of the century, the American prevailed at Allegiant Stadium in Las Vegas with a classy display landing him the unanimous points victory on the judges’ scorecards (116-112, 115-113, 115-113).
“He's a strong champion, I've got nothing but respect for him, he's a great champion,” a gracious Crawford said in victory in front of 71,000 fans at the home of the Las Vegas Raiders NFL team.
Crawford produced a measured performance, holding the ring and gaining the larger Mexican’s respect, while marking up his face with a series of quick, punishing shots. Crawford then weathered a wave of pressure from the champion in the final rounds, who maintained in defeat that he still “felt great”.
"I'm a winner for being here,” Canelo claimed afterwards. “there's no defeat here. I've done everything in my career, I take risks.” Relive all the action, updates and reaction from the fight card below, as The Independent provides brings you the latest from Las Vegas:
Turki Alalshikh reveals Canelo’s eyewatering pay for Terence Crawford clash and Saudi fights
Canelo vs Crawford official scorecards: Did the judges get it right?
Who’s really the best pound-for-pound boxer in the world? Crawford makes claim after Canelo victory
Mike Tyson floors YouTube star MrBeast with crushing punch at Canelo v Crawford
The Independent reacts to Crawford's masterful win over Canelo in Vegas
Terrence Crawford gives post-fight reaction after history-making win against Canelo Alvarez
The surprising punch stat from Terence Crawford’s win over Canelo Alvarez
Crawford, competing two divisions above his previous maximum, scored 116-112 and 115-113 twice in a slick and assured performance.
But there was a surprising twist in the final stats, with Canelo’s punch accuracy 1 per cent greater than his rival, at 38 per cent to 37 per cent for the victorious Crawford.
The stats overall however largely favoured the American, who landed 115 of 534 total punches and 70 of 208 power punches, with Canelo landing just 99 of 338 total punches in comparison, per Compubox.
The surprising punch stat from Terence Crawford’s win over Canelo Alvarez
Canelo makes bold Crawford comparison with Mayweather Jr
“I think Crawford is way better than Floyd Mayweather,” Canelo says.
"He deserves all the credit, I tried my best tonight, I couldn't figure out the style. He has everything, I tried my best.”
Crawford's next opponent at 160 lbs?
If Crawford does duck down to 160 lbs, then his options are as follows:
- Janibek Alimkhanuly (WBO and IBF champion)
- Carlos Adames (WBC champion)
- Erislandy Lara (WBA champion)
- Chris Eubank Jr
- Conor Benn - currently campaigning at middleweight with rematch set against Eubank JR
- Jaron ‘Boots’ Ennis; a 154-pounder, but would the American come up one more weight division for an all-American clash?
- Hamzah Sheeraz - a favourite of Turki Alalshikh, this could lead to a golden opportunity for the Briton
Canelo vs Crawford official scorecards: Did the judges get it right?
Terence Crawford made boxing history on Saturday night, outpointing Canelo Alvarez to become undisputed super-middleweight champion – the first three-weight undisputed king of the modern era.
Crawford, 37, overcame Canelo, 35, inside Las Vegas’s Allegiant Stadium, with more than 70,000 fans watching on. Many of them were Mexican, on the nation’s Independence Weekend, cheering on Canelo as he looked to hand Crawford his first defeat.
But Crawford was too slick and too smart for Canelo, ultimately earning a unanimous-decision win: 116-112, 115-113, 115-113.
Here is how each scorecard looked, round by round:
But did the judges get it right? Here’s how The Independent scored Canelo vs Crawford:
Canelo vs Crawford official scorecards: Did the judges get it right?
Terence Crawford makes bold claim after victory over Canelo Alvarez
“You have to win the championship rounds, I new I had to close out the show.
“This is top of the top, Canelo is an all-time great. There are no more Canelos, I’m the Canelo, I’m the face of boxing now.
“I’m the best pound-for-pound fighter in the world.”
Oleksandr Usyk might still have a claim to that title, but he has certainly separated from the rest, including Naoya Inoue, for now.
Terence Crawford shows off his new collection of belts after win over Canelo Alvarez
Terence Crawford teases trip to middleweight after becoming undisputed super middleweight king
“My gut says the same thing, I’ll sit down with my team, who knows, I might go down to 160 pounds,” Crawford says again when asked about retirement.
“There will be excuses behind every victory I’ve had, but the competition don’t respect you, they think the people you are fighting are not worthy, a lot of fans don’t realise these fighters put their lives on the line.”
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