By Kleberly Mendoza
28 Jul 2024, 15:00 PM EDT
After the fight was made official, Edgar Berlanga He responded to all the “haters” who have criticized his choice as the next opponent from Saúl ‘Canelo’ Álvarez and assured that he will make them eat their words.
In a story published on his official Instagram account, Berlanga He asked sports fans not to underestimate him and warned that he could be the first to knock out Canelo Álvarez.
“I want to tell my fans that we have the fight, Berlanga vs. Canelo, on September 14 in Las Vegas, on PPV. For all you f**king haters out there, you’re gonna eat your words. Don’t ignore me, because you’ve been doing it for a long time, but it’s knockout season, explosive season. You know what we’re here for. Puerto Rico in the house, you hear? Just so you know,” he said.
Canelo Alvarez will fight Edgar Berlanga Mexican Independence weekend (September 14) at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas and will compete directly with UFC, which that same day will be celebrating the 306th edition in honor of the Aztec fighters at The Sphere.
After the Mexican reached an agreement with his mandatory challenger for the International Boxing Federation (IBF) William Scull to step aside; Berlanga, David Benavídez -both mandatory rivals- and Chris Eubank Jr. were the strongest options for their second duel in 2024.
Sports fans and experts wanted the Mexican Monster to receive the opportunity after three years of waiting, but Once again the man from Guadalajara ignored him and chose the Puerto Rican. For this reason, Benavídez decided to remain as a mandatory challenger at 175 pounds and not as a super middleweight.
Berlanga had been sounding since the beginning of the year as the favorite to fight the Mexican in September and, after becoming mandatory, He stepped up his campaign to get the opportunity by the titles super middleweight and he got it.
After the fight was made official, the IBF ordered Canelo Álvarez to be stripped of his belt for failing to fulfill his obligation to Scull, who will now face Vladimir Shishkin for the vacant title.
Saúl ‘Canelo’ Álvarez, 34, was able to recover from a bad start and He beat his compatriot Jaime Munguía on the judges’ cards in Las Vegas. The unified 168-pound champion has a career record of 61 wins (39 by knockout), two losses and two draws as a professional.
Meanwhile, Edgar Berlanga, 27, retained the WBO NABO super middleweight title with a win over Padraig McCrory. The Puerto Rican fighter has an undefeated record with 22 wins, 17 of them by knockout.
Keep reading:
· Edgar Berlanga praises Canelo Álvarez: “He is a legend”
· Edgar Berlanga believes he is a different fighter than any other Canelo Alvarez has faced
· Eddie Hearn believes there is a chance that Canelo Alvarez will fight Edgar Berlanga in September