Canelo Alvarez vs Billy Joe Saunders preview: Pound-for-pound king enters unification bout as firm favourite

On Sunday, boxing’s leading man Saul ‘Canelo’ Alvarez (55-1-2) returns in front of 60,000 fans at Texas’ AT&T stadium. Britain’s Billy Joe Saunders will also be there. This is no insult to BJS (30-0), but make no mistake. He’s just a bit-part player in the Canelo show. The most interesting thing about this fight is how this version of Canelo – the almost universally acclaimed P4P king – will deal with a slick, tricky southpaw compared to 2014, when he had all sorts of problems winning a split decision over Cuban-American ‘spoiler’ Erislandy Lara. While many argue Lara did enough to win the bout, and the Mexican was still fresh off boxing lesson handed to him by Floyd Mayweather, everyone in boxing knew that it was just a matter of time before Canelo became the sport’s biggest money man. Thus, boxing’s penchant for giving the ‘A side’ every benefit of the doubt and Canelo emerging victorious. The answer to that question, one fears for Saunders supporters, is without too much trouble. Because this version of Canelo is far removed from that version of Canelo. The only trouble that Canelo has had in recent years has come in the shape of Kazakh destroyer Gennadiy Golovkin – who arguably won both fights against Canelo but had to settle for an absurd draw and a defeat on the scorecards (there’s boxing’s ugly tendency to side with the money man again). Since 2018, Canelo has defeated some very good fighters (Daniel Jacobs and Callum Smith), knocked out a shop-worn Sergey Kovalev, and had a couple of stay busy mismatches against Rocky Fielding and Avni Yildirim. Not exactly a murderer’s row, but fair enough for a champion in today’s day and age. In the same period, Saunders fought David Lemieux, Charles Adamu, Shefat Isufi, Marcelo Coceres and Martin Murray. Of those, only the power-punching but extremely limited Lemieux and the grizzled veteran Murray would even be remotely familiar to casual boxing fans. His best performances came against Lemieux and Murray, while Coceres gave him all that he could handle. Canelo has basically had his way with fighters in the ring since 2018, while Saunders has alternated between putting on some fine displays and some so-so performances. He seems to fight up or down to the level of his opponents. [caption id=“attachment_9603831” align=“alignnone” width=“640”]  Saul ‘Canelo’ Alvarez (L) and Billy Joe Saunders (R) face off after weighing in. AFP[/caption] Like Callum Smith before him, Saunders enjoys the reach advantage over Canelo. He may have faster feet. That’s where his advantages end. Canelo has the edge over Saunders in almost all departments: He’s a year younger, with a wealth of professional experience, lightning-quick reflexes, power in both hands. His gas tank is limitless, his offensive is slick and unpredictable and he’s developing into a masterful defensive fighter. Which is scary. That Canelo, already a veteran of the sweet science, only seems to be hitting his peak now. So, how does the bout play out? Let’s face it. Saunders isn’t going to get a win on the judges’ scorecards. Saunders just doesn’t have the punching power ala Golovkin to get Canelo’s respect or take him off his feet (Canelo’s chin seems to be carved from the finest granite). Nor does he have the natural size advantage of Kovalev which kept Canelo cagey and ultra-respectful for the better part of 11 rounds. Expect Saunders to do what Saunders does. Stay on the outside. Stick and move. Focus on safety first. He’ll even take a few rounds off Canelo in the early going, as the Mexican tries to adjust to fighting a southpaw after a near seven-year gap. But Canelo can more than match Saunders when it comes to pure boxing ability. His ring IQ is off the charts. Expect Canelo to cut the ring off proficiently and launch a devastating body attack that slows Saunders down in the second half of the fight. Though Saunders will hold on and make it to the final bell. Prediction: Canelo via Unanimous Decision.­​