Tale of the tape
Here’s how the fighters measure up ahead of tonight’s showdown. Both Canelo and Crawford came in a half-pound below the super middleweight divisional limit at Friday’s official weigh-in, which took place behind closed doors with the fighters in separate rooms. But for all the (very valid) talk about Crawford moving up two weight classes and Álvarez being more accustomed to 168lb, the American brings in physical advantages of one-and-a-half inches in height and four-and-a-half inches in reach. And he really didn’t look that much like the smaller man when they came face to face later Friday at the ceremonial weigh-in that was open to the public.
Key events
Christian Mbilli and Lester Martinez have just fought to a 10-round split draw in the second-to-last undercard bout. One judge scored it 97-93 for Martinez, another 96-94 for Mbilli while the third had it 95-95. A terrific all-action scrap that will end up on a lot of fight of the year shortlists (even if the 97-93 score is more than a little dubious). Rematch, please.
Allegiant Stadium is filling up nicely as Christian Mbilli and Lester Martinez trade blows in the second-to-last preliminary bout. The $2bn home of the NFL’s Raiders has been configured for more than 70,000 spectators and the seats appear close to 90% full right now. Ticket prices for tonight’s card were discounted over the last few days amid an unusually sedate atmosphere for a Canelo fight week, giving rise to concerns over whether the stadium would fill to capacity.
Why? Some had pointed to the so-called Trump slump, the decline in international tourism that has impacted Las Vegas in recent months as a result of the Trump administration’s immigration policies. The likelier theory is that while most of boxing’s more recent super-fights have required years of wrangling and spent years in the public consciousness before coming to pass – Mayweather v Pacquiao, Álvarez v Golovkin, Crawford v Spence – this one materialized practically overnight. A year ago, Álvarez v Crawford was more a bar-room flight of fancy than plausible matchup given the weight gulf. Now, suddenly, here it is.
Tale of the tape
Here’s how the fighters measure up ahead of tonight’s showdown. Both Canelo and Crawford came in a half-pound below the super middleweight divisional limit at Friday’s official weigh-in, which took place behind closed doors with the fighters in separate rooms. But for all the (very valid) talk about Crawford moving up two weight classes and Álvarez being more accustomed to 168lb, the American brings in physical advantages of one-and-a-half inches in height and four-and-a-half inches in reach. And he really didn’t look that much like the smaller man when they came face to face later Friday at the ceremonial weigh-in that was open to the public.
Mohammed Alakel has just won a 10-round unanimous decision over John Ornelas. The scores were 99-91 (twice) and 98-92. Not a very good fight. Two more undercard bouts before the main event.
Meanwhile, Canelo Álvarez has just arrived at Allegiant Stadium.
Allegiant Stadium is about two-thirds empty but filling up during the first main undercard bout, but we’ve just gotten our first sense of who the crowd will be backing in the main event. Between frames of the scheduled 10-round lightweight fight between Mohammed Alakel and John Ornelas, the video on the large screens around the building flashed to Terence Crawford entering the building from a gangway beneath the stadium. The initial sound of cheers was quickly drowned out by lusty boos and jeers from what’s clearly going to be a pro-Álvarez audience. Not that Crawford wasn’t expecting it.
“Of course it’s going to be a pro-Canelo crowd,” Crawford said Wednesday. “It’s Mexican Independence Day. Vegas is like a second home for him … I’m looking forward to being an underdog. I’m already prepared for that.”
Preamble
Las Vegas is built on spectacle, but even by this city’s gaudy standards tonight feels oversized. Allegiant Stadium, a $2bn colossus usually reserved for NFL Sundays, has been turned into a fight coliseum for Saúl “Canelo” Álvarez v Terence “Bud” Crawford. More than 70,000 fans are expected to file inside, the largest crowd ever assembled for a boxing match in this desert town. And for the first time in decades, one of the sport’s biggest events won’t sit behind a pay-per-view wall: Netflix is sending it into living rooms around the world as part of a monthly subscription.
That scale makes sense on this particular weekend. Mexican Independence Day has become an unofficial holiday on boxing’s calendar, a chance for Canelo to defend more than belts. For years the red-headed idol from Guadalajara has carried his nation’s flag in Las Vegas, turning the Strip into a sea of green, white and red. He arrives at 35 as the undisputed champion at 168lb, a four-division title-holder from 154 through 175 who has outlasted rivals, critics and the fickle cycles of boxing stardom. He is, simply, the sport’s most bankable act.
And yet opposite him stands a fighter many regard as America’s finest boxer since Floyd Mayweather Jr. Crawford, 37, is a four-division champion himself from 135 through 154, a switch-hitting puzzle-solver from Omaha, Nebraska. He unified 140, then 147 in a run that culminated with a thrashing of Errol Spence Jr in 2013. What he lacks in Canelo’s commercial footprint he makes up in reputation: a craftsman’s craftsman, a fighter who has made elite-level opponents look ordinary for more than a decade.
The intrigue, of course, is the weight gap. All but one of Crawford’s 41 professional bouts took place at 147lb or below, while Canelo has been entrenched at 168 for nearly seven years and once captured a title at light heavyweight. History says such leaps can be ruinous. But Crawford’s frame has long hinted he could grow into the weight and his confidence has not wavered. The bookmakers still lean toward Canelo, but the odds have narrowed since the fight was announced.
What happens tonight will ripple beyond the ring. This is the first event promoted by Zuffa Boxing, a new venture under TKO Holdings – the company that also owns UFC and WWE. Dana White’s presence at the dais this week, backed by Saudi funding, underscores how forces outside the ropes are trying to reshape the sport. A proposed law in Washington could even change who controls boxing’s titles. That such upheaval can unfold beneath the spotlight of a fight like this only amplifies its sense of occasion.
For Canelo, the stakes are straightforward: maintain supremacy at 168, defend his status as Mexico’s national hero and remind the world that his reign is not nearing twilight. For Crawford, the prize is bigger still. He has already become the first man of the four-belt era to unify two divisions (a feat since matched by Naoya Inoue and Oleksandr Usyk). A win here, against a naturally larger man on the grandest stage imaginable, would propel him into all-time company.
The live Netflix broadcast has just started and there will be three preliminary bouts ahead of the main event. Order of play is as follows:
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Mohammed Alakel v John Ornelas, 10 rounds, lightweights
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Christian Mbilli v Lester Martinez, 12 rounds, super middleweights
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Callum Walsh v Fernando Vargas Jr, 10 rounds, junior middleweights
After that, two of the great fighters of their generation will make the long walk, one from Guadalajara, the other from Omaha, to decide who rules boxing’s most glittering stage.
How to watch Canelo v Crawford
The day is finally here. Saúl ‘Canelo’ Álvarez and Terence Crawford, two of the most accomplished boxers of the past two decades, will climb through the ropes tonight in Las Vegas for one of the sport’s biggest events in years.
For the first time in boxing history, a fight of this significance will be streamed live globally on Netflix at no additional cost to subscribers. The stream begins at 9pm ET (2am BST on Sunday), with three undercard bouts leading into the main event.
Netflix will offer commentary feeds in several languages. Unlike traditional pay-per-view – which often costs US fans around $90 – this one is included in a standard subscription.
You can read our complete watch guide for tonight’s fight here.
Bryan will be here shortly. In the meantime here’s his preview of tonight’s showdown in Las Vegas.
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