Canelo Álvarez

Beginnings

In an interview, Álvarez explained that he was born in the city of Guadalajara, Jalisco, but his family was at the time living in San Agustín de Tlajomulco de Zúñiga. At the age of five, his family moved to their current home of Juanacatlán, Jalisco. Growing up on his family's farm, he learned horseback riding, which he continues today. Álvarez is the youngest of eight children, seven of them boys; all of his brothers also became professional boxers. Among his brothers are welterweight boxers Ramón Álvarez, Ricardo Álvarez and former Interim WBA World Champion, Rigoberto Álvarez.

"Canelo" in Spanish is the masculine word for cinnamon, which is a common nickname for people with red hair.

Amateur career

Álvarez started boxing at 13 years old, after watching his older brother Rigoberto Álvarez's debut as a professional boxer. In 2004 he won the silver medal at the Junior Mexican National championships, held in Sinaloa. He became the 2005 Junior Mexican National Boxing Champion in Tuxtla Gutierrez, Chiapas, at the age of 15. Canelo has an amateur record of 44-2.

Early years

Álvarez turned professional at 15, shortly after his championship at the Junior Nationals, because his trainers at the time, father-and-son team Chepo and Eddy Reynoso, were unable to find suitable junior opponents for him. In his first 19 months as a professional, he knocked out 11 of his 13 documented opponents, all of whom were significantly older. However, the elder Reynoso stated in 2013 that Álvarez had fought 10 more times in that span, winning all 10 by knockout, but that these fights (all in small venues in the Mexican state of Nayarit) were so poorly documented that it was not worth the trouble to seek to have the record corrected. His weight fluctuated in his three years as a professional including two documented fights within the Light welterweight limit of 140 lbs before he settled in the Welterweight division at 147 lbs.

Álvarez' third official bout of his career was a win over future IBF Lightweight Champion, Miguel Vázquez on January 20, 2006, at his home town of Guadalajara, Jalisco. On June 28, 2008, Álvarez defeated Miguel Vázquez again in a rematch. He also made world history in that fight card when all of his six brothers fought on the same night, Canelo being the youngest. The only downside was that three of them failed to win their pro debuts. The other four more experienced brothers won. On March 6, 2010, he got a crushing third-round knockout over Brian Camechis in Tuxtla Gutiérrez, Chiapas. Álvarez defeated Jose Miguel Cotto on May 1, 2010, on the Floyd Mayweather vs. Shane Mosley undercard in the MGM Grand Garden Arena on HBO PPV to retain his NABF Welterweight title.

Light middleweight

His sixth-round TKO win over Luciano Leonel Cuello for the WBC Silver Light Middleweight bout was held in the Vicente Fernández Arena. During the post fight interview Mexican singer Vicente Fernández gave Álvarez a horse. He was also given a horse by the mayor of Tepic, where Alvarez sometimes trains.

He next fought against the former WBC Welterweight Champion Carlos Baldomir at the Staples Center in Los Angeles, California, on the Shane Mosley vs. Sergio Mora undercard. Baldomir stated in a pre-fight interview that he wants the winner of Mora vs. Mosley, as he said "after I knock out El Canelo." Baldomir weighed in at 153.4 pounds for the bout, that was contracted for 151 pounds. In California, if a fighter is overweight he is penalized 20 percent of his purse and that percent is given to the other fighter. However Álvarez declined to take the extra $12,000 from Baldomir. In the 6th round Alvarez landed a crushing blow that knocked Baldomir out cold. Álvarez is the only one to knock Baldomir out and is only the second boxer ever to stop Carlos Baldomir. Álvarez successfully defended his Light Middleweight title unanimously versus former world champion Lovemore N'dou in Veracruz. It was a competitive fight despite the wide margins on the official scorecards of 120-108 (twice) and 119-109.

WBC light middleweight champion

On March 5, 2011, Álvarez defeated EBU Welterweight Champion Matthew Hatton by unanimous decision, for the vacant WBC Light Middleweight belt. The bout was televised on HBO and took place at the Honda Center in Anaheim, California. Alvarez was docked a point in the seventh round for hitting after the break. All three ringside judges scored the bout at 119-108 in favor of Alvarez. He lost 1 point for an illegal punch in the seventh round, which was uniformly scored 9-9. Alvarez landed 47% of his 626 punches, including 53% of his power shots, while Hatton connected with just 25% of his 546 total blows.

Álvarez successfully defended his newly awarded WBC Light Middleweight title against the Ring #4 ranked Super Welterweight and current EBU Light Middleweight Champion, Ryan Rhodes. Álvarez defeated Rhodes by a technical knockout victory in the twelfth round on June 18, 2011, in Guadalajara, Jalisco.

On 17 September 2011, Álvarez successfully defended his title with a TKO in Round 6 over The Contender competitor Alfonso Gomez at the Staples Center, Los Angeles, winning by technical knockout victory in the sixth round. Álvarez got a knockdown in Round 1, but there were a couple cautious rounds that left Gomez win the majority of the first five rounds. Álvarez was looking for one shot and got it in the sixth round. He backed up Gomez with a right hand and followed up with a flurry to get the referee to jump in and stop the fight.

Álvarez vs. Cintron

Alvarez defeated Kermit Cintron in the 5th round by TKO. Alvarez spent the first three rounds feeling out Cintron, a former Welterweight Champion, before punishing the Puerto Rican with body shots and straight right hands in the fourth round. He knocked Cintron down once and had him in trouble at the end of the round, but Cintron was saved by the bell. In the fifth round, Cintron came out and caught Álvarez with some combinations, but Alvarez eventually overpowered him with several powerful straight right hands, and the referee stepped in and stopped it.

Álvarez vs. Mosley

Richard Schaefer announced that Álvarez's next bout on May 5, 2012, on the undercard of Miguel Cotto's clash with Floyd Mayweather Jr. at the MGM Grand Garden Arena, and co- featured, on Cinco De Mayo. On February 11, Shane Mosley was announced as Álvarez's next opponent on May for his WBC Light Middleweight title. Alvarez defeated Mosley after 12 rounds via unanimous decision.

Álvarez vs. Lopez

Álvarez was originally set to fight Ring Top 10 Super Welterweight, and former Welterweight Champion, Paul Williams on September 15, 2012. However, on May 27, 2012, a motorcycle accident in the U.S. state of Georgia paralyzed Williams from the waist down, ending his boxing career. Álvarez's possible opponents for his September bout were James Kirkland, Austin Trout, Delvin Rodriguez and most notably, Victor Ortiz.

Álvarez was scheduled to defend his title against former welterweight titlist Victor Ortiz in the main event of a Showtime PPV card dubbed "Knockout Kings" from the MGM Grand Garden Arena. However, Ortiz was unable to defeat underdog Josesito Lopez in what was supposed to be a "tune-up" fight on June 23 at the Staples Center in Los Angeles, losing due to referee stoppage (broken jaw) and cancelling his bout with Alvarez as a result.

Due to this upset, Lopez was instead penciled in to face Canelo at the MGM Grand on the September 15th date, to challenge for Saul's WBC Light Middleweight title. Alvarez won the fight via fifth-round technical knockout after dominating Lopez from start to finish to stay undefeated and increase his record of 41-0.

Álvarez vs. Trout

His next fight took place on April 20, 2013 at the Alamodome in San Antonio, Texas. The fight was supposed to take place during Cinco de Mayo weekend as the co-main event of the Floyd Mayweather Jr. bout against Robert Guerrero; however, due to a contract disagreement between Alvarez and Mayweather regarding their potential fight on September 14, 2013, Alvarez opted to headline his own card. Alvarez successfully defended his WBC Light Middleweight title and won the WBA & the vacant The Ring Magazine Light Middleweight title.

During the first rounds, Trout seemed to have a good game plan. However, Alvarez's power took over after the third round, eventually scoring a knockdown in the seventh round to give Trout the first knockdown of his career. Alvarez set up the knockdown with a pawing left jab, followed by the straight right hand. The fight was closer than expected, but Alvarez still managed to dominate Trout throughout the fight with impressive head movement and shocking power. All three judges scorecards were in favor of Alvarez with a fair margin (115-112, 116-111 and 118-109). Although the last score card (118-109) created controversy, the majority of sport analysts had Alvarez winning by at least 2 points. Immediately after the bout, Trout stated that he hadn't underestimated Alvarez but that he trained to fight a completely different fighter.

Álvarez vs. Mayweather

Álvarez, The Ring Magazine's no. 1 rated Light Middleweight and unified WBC/WBA "regular" Light Middleweight Champion, fought against The Ring Magazine's no. 1 pound for pound fighter, WBA super welterweight champion and WBC/The Ring Magazine Welterweight Champion, Floyd Mayweather Jr., on September 14, 2013.

Mayweather held a world title at welterweight (147 pounds), but he also still owned a junior middleweight title (154), which he won by outpointing Miguel Cotto in May 2012. And was moving back up in weight to face Alvarez with their belts on the line, although the fight was contested at a catchweight of 152 pounds. The titles disputed for the bout were Alvarez's WBC, WBA "regular" & The Ring Light Middleweight titles, and Mayweather's WBA "super" Light Middleweight title.

Mayweather defeated Alvarez by majority twelve round decision. In a fight that many thought was going to be Floyd Mayweather's toughest, he outclassed the younger Alvarez. Many observers at ringside thought Mayweather won all twelve rounds.

Álvarez vs. Angulo

Álvarez fought Alfredo Angulo on March 8, 2014. Álvarez came out strong, throwing combinations. In a fairly lopsided beating, Álvarez scored a tenth round stoppage over Angulo punctuated by a lead left uppercut.

Álvarez vs. Lara

Álvarez fought Erislandy Lara on July 12, 2014, at the MGM Grand in a non-title match. Lara's WBA light middleweight title was not on the line as the fight took place at a 155-pound catchweight, and both fighters weighed in at precisely 155 pounds. Álvarez rehydrated to 171 pounds while Lara came into the ring at 166 pounds. In a very close and competitive fight that went to a split decision, Álvarez came out on top with the two judges scoring 115–113 in favor of each fighter and the final judge scoring 117–111 in favor of Álvarez. The final scorecard was controversial as many observers considered it far too wide. According to CompuBox, Lara landed 55 jabs to nine from Álvarez, who landed the jab at a five percent connect rate. Álvarez managed to land 88 power punches while Lara landed 53 power punches. Lara's clean punching alis defense and movement were weighed against Álvarez's effective aggressiveness. Lara came out in dominant fashion, utilizing a stick-and-move style and capturing the early rounds. Álvarez was later able to hammer away to the body when he had Lara on the ropes but never adjusted to Lara's one-two combinong with hations. Lara's lead hand played a huge role in this combination's effectiveness, but his output dropped in the middle rounds. Álvarez was able to cut Lara with a lead left uppercut in the seventh round. Although the decision remains controversial, any talk of a rematch in the future was dismissed by Oscar De La Hoya who went on to say, "No one wants a rematch."

Álvarez vs. Kirkland

On May 9, 2015, Alvarez defeated James Kirkland in a non-title super welterweight bout at Minute Maid Park in Houston, Texas via third-round knockout. Kirkland came out aggressively, but Alvarez wobbled him and scored a knockdown via straight right hand in round one. In the third round, a counter right uppercut sent Kirkland to the canvas. Alvarez ended the fight with a jab to the body quickly followed by the right hand, creating the knockout.

Álvarez vs. Cotto

On November 21, 2015, Álvarez won the WBC, lineal and The Ring middleweight titles with a unanimous decision over Miguel Cotto in front of a sold-out crowd of 11,274 at the Mandalay Bay Events Center in Las Vegas. The fight took place at a catchweight of 155 lbs. Although Cotto gave a tremendous effort, moving nicely throughout the fight, the judges clearly went for Álvarez's brute strength, with surprisingly wide scores of 119-109, 118-110 and 117-111. ESPN.com had the fight much closer at 115-113 for Alvarez. According to CompuBox, Álvarez landed 155 of 484 punches (32 percent), and Cotto landed 129 of 629 (21 percent), with Álvarez landed the heavier blows and inflicting more damage. Two months after the fight, the WBC awarded Álvarez the WBC Diamond middleweight title at their headquarters in Mexico.

Álvarez vs. Khan

In early 2016, it was announced that Khan was moving up two weight divisions to middleweight, to fight Álvarez for his lineal, Ring and WBC world middleweight championship titles. The fight took place on 7 May 2016, at the new T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas. The bout was on HBO PPV. Khan kept his distance in the first 5 rounds, using his speed to come in and step out which initially caused trouble for Canelo. In round 6, Canelo landed a devastating right hand that knocked out Khan. The fight generated a live gate of $7,417,350, according to figures released by the Nevada State Athletic Commission. That total came from 13,072 tickets sold, far short of a sellout. The Alvarez-Khan gross places it 34th-best in Nevada history. After the fight, Alvarez and his team invited Middleweight champion Gennady "GGG" Golovkin into the ring to promote a future fight with Golovkin. During the post-fight interview with HBO's Max Kellerman, Alvarez stated, "Let's fight now." On May 18, 2016 Alvarez vacated the WBC title he defended in fighting Amir Khan. The WBC immediately awarded the title to Gennady Golovkin.

Álvarez vs. Smith

It was announced on June 24, Álvarez was to drop the extra pound to 154 and challenge 27 year old, WBO champion Liam Smith (23-0-1, 13 KOs) from England on September 17, 2016, in the main event on an HBO PPV card. Golden Boy Promotions announced on July 18, the bout would take place at AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas, the other venue looking to host the fight was the MGM Grand in Las Vegas. Canelo, who had fought his last 5 fights at his preferred 155 lbs catchweight, said, "I am very pleased to announce my next fight against Liam Smith, a tremendous fighter with real knockout power, and the WBO junior middleweight world title owner, I have no doubt that this fight will be give and take, which will fill the expectations of the fans, and I will work with all the enthusiasm as I always do to get the upper hand on Sept. 17."

In front of a record breaking crowd of 51,240, Álvarez regained a world title at light-middleweight following a devastating left hook to the body in round 9. Smith was also knocked down once in round 7 and once in round 8, in a fight where Álvarez was in control from the opening bell. Álvarez landed 157 punches from 422 thrown with a connect rate of 37%, compared to Smith landing 115 from 403 thrown, a connect rate of 29%. The fight drew an estimate of 300,000 PPV buys.

Golden Boy president Eric Gomez spoke to The Ring Magazine in December and stated that Álvarez had no immediate plans to vacate the WBO title and may fight in the first quarter of 2017, at 154, defending his world title. He also stated that there was still plans for Álvarez to fight Golovkin later in the year.

Álvarez vs. Chávez Jr.

Following Julio César Chávez Jr.'s comeback win against Dominik Britsch in December 2016, he claimed he was back and ready to fight Golovkin at 168 pounds and Álvarez at a 164 catchweight. Negotiations began soon after for a potential HBO ppv fight to take place in 2017 on the Cinco de Mayo weekend, as there was interest from both sides that a fight take place. De La Hoya said a fight with Golovkin would still be likely for September 2017. Golden Boy president Eric Gomez confirmed a catchweight of 165 lbs was agreed between both sides. WBC president Mauricio Sulaiman was on board and said it was a "very attractive fight." and would likely get his organisation involved in the fight. Julio Cesar Chavez Sr. spoke on December 18 about the ongoing negotiations saying Golden Boy were offering his son a small amount for the potential big ppv fight. He went on to claim his son was offered a $5m purse with no mention he would get a cut of the ppv revenue, a counter offer was submitted. A rematch clause was also discussed, which Chavez Jr. and his team had no problem with. Chavez Sr. went on to admit that he was fully aware Álvarez is the A-side in the fight, and would settle for no less than 30-35% of the full revenue.

On December 22, the WBO made Álvarez the mandatory challenger to the world middleweight title, skipping the previous number 1, Avtandil Khurtsidze, which was considered controversial, due to Álvarez currently not fighting at middleweight. Khurtsidze, who had ten days to appeal decision, decided not to. On December 24, Álvarez and his team gave Chavez a week to accept the terms, which included a purse of $7m, or he would consider other options. On January 12, 2017 De La Hoya and Álvarez called for the contract to be signed, which was supposedly sent to Al Haymon, who advises Chavez Jr. and urged him to sign it. A day later, Chavez Jr. claimed he had agreed all the demands set by Álvarez and was said that he would sign the contract. According to Chavez Jr. the new demands included a weight limit set at 164.5 pounds and a $6 million base purse plus PPV revenue percentages. On January 13, Álvarez officially confirmed the fight to take place on May 6, 2017. A rematch clause was also put in place if Chavez Jr. wins the fight and another clause for every pound Chavez Jr. weighs over the limit, he would be fined $1 million. On February 4, Golden Boy Promotions announced announced that the fight would take place at the T-Mobile Arena in Paradise, Nevada. On February 22, Álvarez announced that he planned on vacating his WBO light middleweight title following the Chávez Jr. fight and fighting at middleweight.

Personal life

Álvarez was engaged to 30-year-old Marisol González, who is Miss Mexico Universe 2003 and a sports reporter for Televisa Deportes. He has one daughter with a former girlfriend.