Photo by Tom Hogan/Hogan Photos
Saturday, July 12,2014, from the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas, Nev,. in front of a pro Saul “Canelo” Alvarez sellout crowd, the young Mexican star edged out a split-decision victory against the slick southpaw named Erislandy Lara.
Canelo defeated the fast and defensive Lara in a very intriguing matchup and it was a difficult decision for the judges to determine at the end of the bout.
The 117-111 scorecard by Levi Martinez for Canelo was absurd, I had it at 115-113 for Canelo.
Moving forward, is Canelo the best Junior Middleweight in the World?
This answer is yes, he is the best Junior Middleweight in the world. Floyd Meayweather the WBA and the WBC champion, he will probably never fight again at 154 pounds again unless if he gives Canelo a rematch, and Miguel Cotto is the Middleweight champion.
Canelo is the best full time Junior Middleweight in the world, without a doubt.
We aren’t sure what Miguel Cotto will do in both, the Junior Middle and Middleweight divisions. If Cotto decides to go down, back to Junior Middleweight, he’s not better than Canelo in this current state of time.
Here are the reasons why Canelo right now is better than Cotto in the Junior Middleweight division, due to a better career record and fighting against better opposition.
The history for both fighters overall record at the Junior Middleweight is enriched with great victories, numerous title fights, a few won and few lost. Canelo’s overall record is a very impressive 14-1. He has won both the WBA and the WBC championships.
Cotto’s overall record is a good 4-2. He has won the WBA Super World light middleweight championship. These records were archived from boxrec.com
In the past 28 months from May 2012- July 2014 the 154 pound division has been mainly ruled by Canelo. During this time, he has fought the better and more difficult opposition compared to Cotto. Canelo’s record in this span is a brilliant, 5-1 according to boxrec.com.
For Cotto, during May 2012-October 2013 a 16 month span, he went a 1-2 according to boxrec.com. They both have two common opponents, Mayweather and Trout. Both lost to Mayweather. However, Canelo earned a unanimous decision over Trot. Cotto lost a unanimous decision against Trout. All of these facts are according to boxrec.com.
Let’s take an examination of a more in-depth look at Canelo’s tough and challenging four bout stretch (from April 2013-July 2014). During this time, three out of the four opponents were the most feared fighter in the division at that time.
We must applaud and say thank you to Canelo for taking the risk and rising above the challenge by earning victories. These three fighters include: Austin Trout, Floyd Mayweather and Erislandy Lara.
AP Photo/Eric Gay
At one time, Austin Trout was considered near the top of the division. After he dominated Cotto in a unanimous decision, he attempted to unify titles against Canelo, though he came up short.
When Canelo clashed against Trout, he was an undefeated fighter and still hadn’t been tested versus an opponent in his prime.
A mega showdown between Mayweather versus Canelo followed, which ended in a split-decision loss for the young Mexican, against the best boxer of the last decade.
In his most recent bout against Lara, Canelo wanted to prove that he could earn a victory against another very slick and dangerous boxer. While he didn’t win everyone over with his win, he must be applauded for taking on one of the most avoided fighters in the division.
In Cotto’s 10 month stretch, starting December 2012 and ending in October 2013, he lost a unanimous decision against Trout and earned a TKO victory against Delvin Rodriguez.
In the Trout fight, Cotto look awful. On that night, Trout came to win from the start and his performance was the absolute best of his career against a possible future Hall of Famer.
Leave a comment letting us know who do you think is the best Junior Middleweight in the world.
