Abel Sanchez Dismisses the Idea of Terence Crawford Stopping Canelo Alvarez, Citing Golovkin and Bivol’s Inability to Hurt Him

Trainer Abel Sanchez says for Terence Crawford (41-0, 31 KOs) to receive credit for defeating Canelo Alvarez (63-2-2, 39 KOs) on September 13th, the outcome can’t be controversial. It can’t be a robbery.

Some fans believed Crawford’s last victory over former WBA junior middleweight champion Israil Madrimov was a robbery last year on August 3, 2024. Terence was the A-side in that fight. So, it’s not a surprise that he got the win.

“He’d be in the top 10, maybe the top 5. But top 10 for sure,” said trainer Abel Sanchez to Fighthype when asked where Terence Crawford should be placed in the all-time great list if he defeats Canelo Alvarez on September 13th.

Even with a victory over the 35-year-old Canelo, it would be hard to place Crawford in the top 5 all-time greats. Canelo is too old for Terence to be seen as an all-time great. If Crawford beat these three, we could call him an all-time great:

1. David Benavidez
2. Dmitry Bivol
3. David Morrell

“He’s going to have to beat Canelo, and Canelo not get robbed. It can’t be a gift. He’s going to have to beat him down so there’s no question at the end. If there is, I think we all get cheated, and he gets cheated,” said Sanchez.

Crawford shouldn’t be under any illusions that he’s going to be given a decision. He’s the B-side in this fight, and the contest is taking place in Las Vegas.

“There’s no way on this earth that should even be contemplated,” said Abel when asked if Crawford should be placed in the top five of the all-time greats if he knocks out Canelo. “Gennadiy Golovkin, who is probably one of the hardest hitters of his era, couldn’t hurt him.

“Bivol, who is a pretty good puncher himself at a heavier weight, couldn’t hurt him. Didn’t Gamboa hurt Terence? You’re talking about a guy [Canelo] who has been hit by the best and the biggest and has never been rocked at that level. For me, I wouldn’t even contemplate that [about Canelo being knocked out by Terence],” said Sanchez.

Light heavyweight Dmitry Bivol hit Canelo with consecutive shots in the fifth round of their fight in 2022, but then inexplicably backed off rather than looking to finish him. Bivol is a lot bigger than Crawford.

“It can happen, but they both have to be in the same weight division,” said Sanchez about Crawford knocking out Canelo on September 13th.

It would require Crawford to land the perfect shot to get Canelo out of there, and he may not be willing to sit down on his shots after he gets a taste of Canelo’s power.