Canelo disillusioned with the welterweight title

After becoming the first absolute champion in supermiddleweight history, Canelo aspires to move up to welterweight by challenging WBA champion Dmitry Bivol. However, Canelo could not create a surprise and competed against one of the strongest rated names in this weight class.

After 12 rounds without knock-out, Bivol won with referee points 115-113, 115-113, 115-113 to preserve the WBA title with a record of 20 all-win matches. Even many fans think that the score needs to be more different.

Statistics of EPSN shows the superiority of Bivol. He unleashed 710 hits – nearly twice as many as his opponent – with 152 hits – for a 31% rate. Canelo punched 495 punches, with 84 hits with accuracy, only reaching 17%. Bivol had 418 jabs, hit 46 times, achieving a rate of 11%. While, this figure of Canelo is only 4%, with ten shots on target out of a total of 229 hits. In addition, Bivol also has 106 accurate heavy blows, compared to 74 of the opponent.

Before the match, Canelo signed with Matchroom. If he wins, the Mexican boxer will have three fights with Gennady Golovkin. But Bivol foiled this plan when he defended the WBA belt for the ninth time. He said: “If you don’t believe in yourself, you won’t do anything. Believe in yourself. Thank you Eddie Hearn and sorry for ruining your plans.”

At the T-Mobile ring, Las Vegas, USA, Canelo continued his slow start in the first half. Meanwhile, Bivol tries to keep his distance with jabs. The Russian boxer impresses with his defense, nullifying Canelo’s strong hooks. In addition, Bivol’s thrusts and series of attacks also proved effective. From the third round, Canelo was red on his forehead, and had a small bump on his right eye.

Canelo tried hard in the fifth half to score points, but could not make it difficult for the opponent. Towards the end of the round, the decline in physical strength made the 31-year-old’s movements slow and the attacks also inaccurate. In contrast, Bivol maintained a disciplined play and continuously scored points thanks to the correct combination of blows.

Realizing that he was inferior on the scoreboard, Canelo rose up in the last two innings. But he could not knock the opponent down, only to receive defeat by referee points.

This is the second defeat in Canelo’s career, after losing to Floyd Mayweather in 2013, when he was only 23 years old. After the match, Canelo admitted there was no excuse for defeat, and confirmed he would activate the rematch clause in his contract. He said: “Things can’t end this way. I want to compete, and I will come back stronger. I think I only lost four or five rounds, not the whole game.” In response, Bivol willingly fought a second fight with his Mexican opponent.

According to ESPNBivol earned about 2 million USD, and defeated General Canelo pocketed up to 15 million USD after the show in Las Vegas, excluding revenue in the form of pay TV (PPV).

Hong Duy