Canelo Alvarez‘s defeat to Terence Crawford on September 13 in Las Vegas is still being talked about. Crawford won by unanimous decision (115-113, 115-113 and 116-112), but promoter Eddie Hearn believes that a rematch could generate even more excitement than the first fight, due to the question of whether the Mexican will be able to avenge his stumble.
The retirement hook
Hearn said that the economic and sporting appeal of a second fight is enormous. For many fans, the interest is in seeing if Crawford can force Alvarez to think about retirement, while the Guadalajara native’s followers are confident that he will find the formula to adjust his battle plan. In the first fight, Canelo dominated the early stages, but let victory slip away between rounds nine and 12.
“Canelo could surprise everyone with changes in his style,” Hearn told Sports Illustrated. The Briton believes the Mexican can “re-equip” himself and come back with a renewed repertoire of skills to put Crawford in trouble. Even Chris Eubank Jr. said that a rematch would be “huge” and that Canelo has the tools to reverse the story
The rivals Crawford would avoid
Beyond a possible second showdown with Alvarez, some experts believe Crawford will not risk defending his titles against contenders such as David Benavidez, Dmitri Bivol, Diego Pacheco or Bektemir Melikuziev. Instead, names like Hamzah Sheeraz or Jermall Charlo would be more viable options, as long as there is a big financial incentive behind it.
Trainer Robert Garcia was also enthusiastic about the possibility of a rematch. “If he comes back with the hunger he needs, he could beat Crawford!” he told Fighthype. For Garcia, the key is for Alvarez not to repeat the strategic mistakes of the first fight and to impose his power from start to finish.
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