By: Hans Themistode
Jermall Charlo watched closely from beginning to sudden end as Canelo Alvarez dominated Billy Joe Saunders. The two faced off last night at AT&T Stadium in Dallas, Texas in a super middleweight unification bout.
Although the British product expressed an enormous amount of hubris heading into their showdown, Alvarez (56-1-2, 38 KOs) simply smiled as he warned Saunders that a beating unlike anything he’s witnessed was about to take place. Staying true to his words, Alvarez did just that as he shattered the right orbital bone of Saunders and forced him to remain on his stool for the beginning of the ninth round.
As Charlo (31-0, 22 KOs) sat back and witnessed Alvarez put on a show in front of over 73,000 screaming fans, the Houston native has grown antsy in his wait to fight the Mexican star. Despite Charlo currently campaigning one weight class lower in the middleweight division and regardless of how much his WBC title means to him, the surly knockout artist is willing to risk it all to land the fight he craves mosts.
“F*ck the money, f*ck the fame, f*ck the networks,” said Charlo during an Instagram post. “I’ll lose my title and go to 168, make the fight happen now.”
For years now, Charlo has called for a shot to take on Alvarez. In 2018, Charlo successfully worked his way to the mandated position for the WBC middleweight title, which at the time, was held by Alvarez. While Charlo was hopeful that a showdown between himself and the Mexican native would become a reality, he was left apoplectic as Alvarez was instead, given the WBC Franchise title and made his move to the 168-pound division.
At the moment, Charlo is scheduled to take on middleweight fringe contender Juan Macias Montiel on June 18th. Should he walk away from their contest with the win, Charlo appears more than willing to make the move to the 168-pound division as long as Alvarez is prepared to give him the next title shot.
With Alvarez considered by most as the number one fighter in the world, Charlo’s desire to face him, in part, is due to his lofty status. But, more than anything, the Houston product is under the belief that their showdown is ultimately something that is necessary.
“Boxing needs to see this.”
