When you talk about Saul ‘Canelo’ Alvarez and look at what he has achieved—from debuting as a fifteen-year-old boy to now being a thirty-five-year-old man—it is easy to run out of superlatives. The same goes for Terence ‘Bud’ Crawford.
The words Legend, Superstar, Undisputed Champion, and Pound-for-Pound Great have been thrown around by boxing scribes for decades, but we rarely hear fighters being described as special. Crawford and Alvarez are that; they are both extraordinary in what they have achieved in their lives as boxers.
Crawford began boxing at seven years old in the local gym in Omaha, Nebraska. He campaigned in seventy contests before turning professional in 2008.
Alvarez’s Amateur Foundation
Alvarez came from a fighting family, following his brothers to the gym every day where he would watch them train and spar. He was thirteen when he started boxing in the amateurs. After forty-six contests, Alvarez turned professional in 2005 at fifteen years old.
In 2014, after racking up an impressive 22-0 win streak, Crawford traveled to Glasgow, Scotland, to challenge the proud WBO lightweight champion Ricky Burns. The durable champion was outboxed and outgunned as Crawford took his heart and his title, beating him on points to win his first world title.
Climbing the Divisions
Good wins over Yuriorkis Gamboa and Raymundo led Crawford to move up to fight Thomas Dulorme for the WBO light-welterweight title in Texas. Crawford battered Dulorme to win in the sixth round and become a two-weight world champion.
Crawford went on to defend his light-welterweight title, then beat the tremendously tough Ukrainian boxer Victor Postol for the WBC light-welterweight title and the Ring belt in 2016. After more defenses, he faced Julius Indongo for his WBC and WBO belts along with the IBF title, knocking him out with a body shot in the third round.
In 2018, Crawford moved up to challenge the Australian brawler Jeff Horn for his newly won WBO welterweight title. Crawford dismantled and outclassed the champion to win a world title in a third weight class.
Crawford vs. Top Contenders
Crawford went on to beat Amir Khan, Kell Brook, and Shawn Porter in big wins. It was now 2022, and next up was David Avanesyan. Crawford knocked him out in the sixth round to retain his WBO welterweight title, and this win was instrumental in securing a mega fight with the unified welterweight champion of the world, Errol Spence Jr. Going into the fight, many insiders had Spence as too big, too fast, and too powerful for Crawford. I picked Crawford to dominate and control the fight—my view was Spence was entering as a damaged fighter. I thought Crawford would target Spence’s eye, and he did, beating the unified champion to a pulp to become the undisputed welterweight champion of the world.
After a year off, Crawford moved up to challenge the WBO junior middleweight champion Israil Madrimov in 2024. Madrimov was a decorated amateur with 350 contests under his belt and was unbeaten as a professional. The man from Uzbekistan was well schooled and hard as a rock.
Crawford boxed well, countering Madrimov and winning on the inside, but the champion fought with pride and determination to take Crawford the distance in a tremendous fight. Crawford won on all three scorecards to become a world champion in a fourth weight class. Terence Crawford is 41-0 with 31 KOs.
Alvarez’s First World Title
Saul Alvarez won his first world title in his thirty-seventh fight. He beat the English fighter Matthew Hatton on points to claim the vacant WBC junior middleweight championship in 2011.
After knockout wins over Ryan Rhodes, Alfonso Gomez, and Kermit Cintron, he was matched to fight Shane Mosley in 2012. Alvarez fought with patience and maturity against the dangerous and experienced Mosley, winning on points in Las Vegas.
Facing Mayweather and Beyond
After beating Josesito Lopez and Austin Trout and adding the WBA and Ring junior middleweight belts, he took on Floyd Mayweather. Mayweather was too good on the inside, too smart on the outside, and too fast for Alvarez, beating him on points in 2013.
Alvarez returned in March 2014 against the tough Alfredo Angulo, beating him in ten rounds, then fought Erislandy Lara in a closely contested bout that he won by a disputed split decision. Next up was the powerful James Kirkland, but Alvarez’s pressure, speed, and power were too much—knocking him out in the third round to set up a fight with the Puerto Rican great Miguel Cotto.
Cotto Clash and Khan Upset
Alvarez and Cotto traded punches for twelve tremendous rounds, but in the end, speed, timing, and punch variety proved decisive. Alvarez countered Cotto with big right hands, uppercuts, and hard body shots to win by unanimous decision in Las Vegas.
In 2016, Alvarez took on Amir Khan and was being outboxed until he stepped in with a devastating right hand to Khan’s jaw in the sixth round, knocking him out cold. Alvarez then won the WBO junior middleweight title after breaking down the courageous Liam Smith, battering his body with fast left rips to take him out in the ninth round.
Chavez Jr. and the Golovkin Duels
In 2017, Julio Cesar Chavez Jr. (50-2-1) was up next. Spite, testosterone, Mexican pride, and bragging rights were the main themes of this catchweight fight. Alvarez dismantled and punished the much bigger Chavez Jr., taking him the twelve rounds on Mexican Independence Day weekend in Las Vegas.
Gennady Golovkin had been terrorizing the middleweight division for years, and a fight with Alvarez was both lucrative and inevitable. Their first bout in September 2017 was declared a split draw—many called it a robbery. The rematch came after a twelve-month delay, and Alvarez was declared the winner by majority decision, claiming the WBC, WBA, and Ring middleweight championships of the world.
Later Career and Title Defenses
From there, Alvarez beat Rocky Fielding at super middleweight and Daniel Jacobs at middleweight in 2019. He then stepped up to light heavyweight to challenge Sergey Kovalev for the WBO title, stopping Kovalev in the eleventh round.
After beating Callum Smith on points and defending his super middleweight titles, he battered Avni Yildirim in three rounds, destroyed Billy Joe Saunders in eight rounds, and stopped Caleb Plant in eleven rounds to finish 2021 as undisputed champion.
Alvarez ventured back up to light heavyweight to challenge Dmitry Bivol in May 2022. Bivol fought brilliantly to shut down Alvarez’s attack and retained his title.
Alvarez then returned to Las Vegas for the trilogy fight with Golovkin at super middleweight, winning by unanimous decision and retaining all major belts. He continued defending his super middleweight titles against John Ryder, Jermell Charlo, Jamie Munguia, Edgar Berlanga, and William Scull.
At thirty-four, after a sixty-seven fight career, is Alvarez at the end? Of course he isn’t. He has made hundreds of millions by dismantling and knocking out opponents, but it seems his devastating power has diminished as the years have passed at super middleweight.
Comparative Analysis: Experience vs Skill
Crawford will be thirty-eight on fight night but has had far fewer fights and much less wear and tear. He has had eleven stoppage wins since his Madrimov bout, so he will be the fresher fighter.
Since 2021, Crawford has fought five times with four stoppage wins. Alvarez has fought ten times, and seven of those fights have gone the distance.
There is a lot of talk from insider boxing people saying Crawford will be too small for super middleweight. That is absolute nonsense. Alvarez is 5′8″ with a 70.5″ wingspan; Crawford is 5′8″ with a 74.0″ wingspan.
This fight is all about who can adapt better to the man standing in front of them. Experience is with Alvarez. Skill is with Crawford.
The Fight
Alvarez and Crawford have been fighting and training for years. Who is the fighter with the least wear and tear? Crawford has 31 stoppage wins and has been a dominating force since 2008. Alvarez has 39 stoppage wins, but his last TKO was in 2021 at super middleweight. Will Crawford bring his power up two weight divisions? Probably not.
To win, Crawford needs to box and move and stay off the ropes. The jab is the key—use his jab and double up on it. Crawford has rhythm, balance, and movement, and he can switch effortlessly from southpaw to orthodox. He is the superior boxer, and he can punch. Can he hurt Alvarez? Yes. Can he stop Alvarez? No.
Alvarez is a pressure fighter—a fantastic machine, a sharp shooter. Will he take advantage of Crawford’s slow-start tactic? Can he outbox Crawford? The answer is no. Will Crawford make him grow old and weary in the fight? Yes.
Crawford by unanimous decision in this battle of champions.
About Gary Todd
Gary Todd is an international best-selling author. He has been involved in all aspects of the sport of boxing for decades. Look out for his latest book—coming October 2025.
Last Updated on 06/30/2025