Claressa Shields Pushes for Canelo to Face Andrade, Charlo, or Benavidez
Fresh off a trilogy win over rival Gennady “GGG” Golovkin, Saul “Canelo” Alvarez (58-2-2, 39 KOs) has become a hot topic in boxing circles; particularly on the subject of his next fight. Many pundits believe his next bout will be a rematch with reigning WBA light heavyweight Super champ Dmitry Bivol (20-0, 11 KOs), who beat him by unanimous in May 2022. But there’s a contingency of observers believing that Alvarez should go a different route, including current unified women’s middleweight champ Claressa “GWOAT” Shields (12-0, 2 KOs).
Undisputed super middleweight champion Alvarez is fresh off a dominant unanimous decision win over unified middleweight champ Golovkin. It was a dominant victory for Alvarez, who took control early and never let his rival get into the fight. In the aftermath, there have been numerous discussions about the future of Alvarez. Fellow boxer Claressa Shields shared her opinion of the Mexican superstar during an interview on The Last Stand Podcast. The 27-year-old named three specific fighters she would love to see the Mexican superstar to fight.
DOES THE “GWOAT” HAVE A POINT?
“Demetrius Andrade could give anybody smoke. I love Charlo. I got a lot of respect for Benavidez. But Andrade […] he went to Canelo’s press conference; Andrade tried to press him out, for real! [..] Okay Canelo, you’re not fighting against Mexican fighters. But you’re not fighting against Black fighters, either.
We need to get this going. So, I want to see Canelo against Andrade, against Charlo, against Benavidez […] Those are the fights the fans want to see. Those are the fights that I want to see, and I’m a fan.”
On boxing message boards and social media, many fans argue that the 31-year-old still has a lot of unfinished business at 168. For years, Andrade (31-0, 19 KOs) has been chasing a bout with Alvarez. Alvarez has shown no interest in fighting the two-division world champ. Benavidez (26-0, 23 KOs) is a two-time WBC champion at 168, while Charlo (32-0, 22 KOs) is the current WBC champ at 160. They would also love to fight him.
On the surface, you can understand why Alvarez wants vengeance against Bivol. But he was thoroughly outboxed by the 175-pound champion. The question begs, how much better could he fair in a second fight? Among the hardcore sect, Alvarez facing either Andrade, Charlo, or Benavidez is arguably more intriguing than a second battle with Bivol.
Shields’ viewpoint is far from the outside of the box. But will Alvarez ever face the warriors she mentioned? That will be a hot topic for as long as he continues fighting.
By: Michael Wilson Jr.
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