Julio Cesar Chavez and Other Legends Question if Crawford’s Genius Can Overcome Canelo’s Power at 168 Pounds

Retired former two-division world champion David Haye says Terence Crawford can knock out undisputed super middleweight champion Canelo Alvarez if he gets him hurt in their mega-fight in 21 days on September 13th.

The “Barrage” Strategy for Victory

Haye states that if Crawford (41-0, 31 KOs) can stun Alvarez (63-2-2, 39 KOs) with one big shot, he’ll follow up with “three, four, five, and six shots” to get him out of there in their 12-round headliner on Netflix at Allegiant Stadium in Las Vegas.

“They’ve both got the firepower, experience, and the finishing to beat each other,” said former two-division world champion David Haye to Pro Boxing Fans, when asked if Terence Crawford can knock out the bigger Canelo Alvarez on September 13th.

“It won’t be just one shot. It’ll be one shot followed by three, four, five, and six shots. One of them will go down. I can see that happening both ways,” Haye said about how a knockout would come for Alvarez or Crawford. “They’ve both got great chins. I was picking Canelo until I started thinking about it.”

We’ve seen with Crawford and Canelo that when they get their opponents hurt, they pour it on, hitting them with a barrage of punches to get the knockouts. Both are excellent finishers when they have their opposition in trouble.

Terence came up empty in his last fight against WBA junior middleweight champion Israil Madrimov on August 3, 2024. Crawford’s power didn’t look as formidable at 154 as it had been in the 147, 140, and 135 weight classes.

Canelo’s Major Advantages

• Weight and natural size: Alvarez is putting on a lot of weight the way Crawford is for this fight, and will be comfortable carrying his size
• Experience at 168: It’s Crawford’s first fight at super middleweight. He opted not to take a tune-up to get adjusted to the division. Canelo has been fighting at 168 since December 15, 2018, when he defeated Rocky Fielding.
• Better quality opposition: Alvarez has fought world champions Gennadiy Golovkin, Floyd Mayweather Jr., Erislandy Lara, Shane Mosley, Dmitry Bivol, Sergey Kovalev and Caleb Plant. In contrast, Crawford’s more meager resume lists Israil Madrimov, Errol Spence [post-2019 car crash], Ricky Burns, Shawn Porter [late in his career], and Viktor Postol.
• Power: Canelo is one of the hardest punchers in the 168-lb division, and doesn’t need to load up on his shots to generate pop.
• Activity: This area is a significant advantage for Canelo. He’s steadily fought at least twice a year since 2021. For his part, Crawford has fought on an annual basis since 2020, fighting once in 2020, 2021, 2022, 2023, and 2024.

Chavez Questions Crawford’s Genius

“Canelo’s power is no joke. Crawford is a genius in the ring, but moving up to 168? That’s a big ask. Canelo can end it with one punch if Crawford gets reckless,” said boxing legend Julio Cesar Chavez to Fighthype.

The body punching from Canelo is one area that is overlooked by fans and the media when discussing his offensive talents. He’s not a headhunter like many fighters are in the 168-lb division, and will likely be looking to target that area on Crawford on September 13th. With Terence’s defensive skills, it’s difficult to hit him with headshots, but his body is one area where he’s hittable.

“I felt Crawford’s power, and it’s real, but Canelo’s body shots are different. He’ll wear Crawford down and stop him late, maybe Round 10 or 11,” said Errol Spence Jr. to BoxingScene.