By Kleberly Mendoza
28 Jul 2024, 10:30 AM EDT
Oscar de la hoya He criticized Saúl ‘Canelo’ Álvarez for choosing Edgar Berlangamandatory challenger by the World Boxing Association (WBA), as his next opponent to defend his unified super middleweight championship in Las Vegas.
In a video posted on account X (formerly Twitter), De la Hoya indicated that possibly Canelo Álvarez fans They are not happy with the decision to choose Berlanga and not David Benavídezso he thinks they will start boycotting his fights.
“The fight for September 14, Canelo Álvarez against Edgar Berlanga, has already taken place, a fight that nobody asked for. “Fans are going to start boycotting Canelo for continuing to avoid you know who. And, on top of that, they are going against the UFC in La Esfera. Phew, good luck with that,” 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; Edgar 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