Saul Alvarez v Alfredo Angulo: Tough opponent for Canelo’s return
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Saul Alvarez (42-1-1) returns to the MGM Grand in Las Vegas after defeat to Floyd Mayweather Jr last time out and has not given himself any easy route for a return to winning ways.
Alfredo Angulo (22-3-0) has not been in the ring with anyone of Canelo’s calibre but the 31-year-old Mexican has been knocking on the door of boxing’s big time for a while now.
Like Canelo, El Perro, comes into this fight on the back of a defeat, but despite losing to Erislandy Lara in his most recent bout, the 5ft 11 big puncher put in a much more polished display under the training of Virgil Hunter and is expected to make his 23-year-old opponent work for the win this time round.
As the betting suggests, a win for the younger man is the most likely outcome – priced at 1/8 – and when the only man to have beaten Alvarez is widely considered the best pound-for-pound fighter on the planet it’s easy to see why.
That Angulo has suffered three career defeats despite never really going up against an elite fighter only enhances the belief that Canelo will emerge victorious.
However, the calibre of people that the older man surrounds himself with and the fact that a win here would propel him into the mix with the likes of Mayweather means El Perro should not be underestimated.
His sparring background includes the likes of Roy Jones Jr and in recent training he has traded blows with Britain’s Amir Khan and the highly-rated Andre Ward.
With 18 of his 22 wins coming by way of knockout, Angulo possess enough power to cause Alvarez some trouble, but a stoppage seems his only route to victory, with the younger man clearly the classier operator and the only likely victor of a bout that goes the distance.
As such, the advice is to take the better price of 1/2 on Alvarez stopping Angulo by KO or TKO – the way the 31-year-old’s last two losses came – or for an outside shout taking the 7/1 on El Perro winning inside the distance.
With both fighters packing explosive punching power this one is set to be a spectacle come what may.
All Odds and Markets are correct as of the date of publishing.
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