Via Allan Fox: Canelo Alvarez said his defeat last Saturday night to IBF light heavyweight champion Dmitry Bivol couldn’t be compared to his defeat to Floyd Mayweather Jr. in 2013.
Unlike in the school game against Floyd, Canelo (57-2-2, 39 KOs) felt that he fought well enough to win seven rounds against Bivol (20-0, 11 KOs); he is proud and believes he has done enough to deserve the victory.
The referees scored closely, helping the undefeated 31-year-old Bivol win narrowly with the following scores: 115-113, 115-113 and 115-113.
Interestingly, all three judges lifted Canelo 4-0 after four innings, but they only gave him one more round to award him ninth.
With Canelo believing he deserved the win, he disagreed with how the umpires scored the fight, but neither did the fans.
Most agree that Bivol’s movement caused Canelo to joint, and that he lacked the condition and foot speed to reach the Russian boxer. Sure enough, Canelo looked very tired after the second half.
He has said that he wants to start quickly against Bivol, but the effort Canelo must put into that plan is too much for his body.
In Canelo’s match with Gennady Golovkin, he let off steam in the second half of the competition and gave away innings. However, against Bivol, Canelo had lacked much earlier and the fight was smoking hot from the third round.
Canelo doesn’t feel crushed by defeat
“We’ll go and see what’s nextlet’s talk about it and let you know,” Canelo Alvarez said at his post-match press conference last Saturday night when asked if he might reconsider an immediate rematch with Dmitry Bivol.
“I don’t feel that way. I feel like I’m walking out of this fight with my head held high because I gave my all in a different weight class,” Canelo said when asked if the Bivol loss took a toll on morale. like the loss to Floyd Mayweather Jr. . in 2013.
“Maybe so,” Canelo said when asked if his rivalry with Bivol could define his career.
Bivol ruins Canelo’s trilogy plans
“He had the ninth best, and then Bivol came back and won tenth, eleventh and [twelfth]”Eddie Hearn said to iFL TV about Canelo falling in the championship rounds.
“He [Bivol] fully deserved to win the skirmish, and a new boxing star was born. Obviously, I have a closer relationship with Canelo than with Dmitry Bivol.
“I respect Bivol and his manager Vadim. I gave him the chance and he got the line,” Hearn said in response when told Bivol apologized for upsetting the trilogy fight between Canelo and Gennadiy Golovkin in September.
“Gennadiy Golovkin sat there tonight, not believing what just happened, and now we look at [Canelo vs. Bivol] Hearn said.
