Canelo v Crawford – all you need to know
Saul 'Canelo' Alvarez takes on Terence Crawford in what could be one of the best fights of the year on Saturday in Las Vegas.
Crawford steps up two weights to face the undisputed super-middleweight champion, aiming to become the first male fighter to win an undisputed title in three weight classes in the four-belt era.
Alvarez, 35, is for the first time in his illustious 67-fight career being cast as the old guard, despite Crawford being two years older.
Will Crawford make his case to become boxing's pound-for-pound number one? Or will Alvarez maintain his undefeated record at super-middleweight?
The super-fight will be staged at NFL side Las Vegas Raiders' 65,000-capacity Allegiant Stadium.
Everything you need to know about the event is below.
How to follow Canelo v Crawford on the BBC?
Live text and radio commentary will begin from 03:00 BST on the BBC Sport website and app on Sunday, 14 September.
We will build up to the main event and bring you action from the undercard.
BBC Sport will be in Las Vegas to bring you coverage from all the media events in fight week and follow the biggest stories.
When is Canelo v Crawford?
The first fight on the preliminary card is expected to begin at 22:30 BST, with the main card getting underway around 02:00 on Sunday, 14 September.
Crawford and Alvarez are expected to make their ringwalks between 04:00 and 04:30.
Who is on the Canelo v Crawford undercard & what is the running order?
Saul 'Canelo' Alvarez vs Terence Crawford – IBF, WBC, WBA & WBO super-middleweight titles
Main card from 02:00 BST:
- Callum Walsh v Fernando Vargas – light-middleweight
- Christian Mbilli v Lester Martinez – super-middleweight
- Mohammed Alakel v John Ornelas – lightweight
Preliminary card from 22:30 BST:
- Serhii Bohachuk v Brandon Adams – light-middleweight
- Ivan Dychko v Jermaine Franklin Jr – heavyweight
- Reito Tsutsumi v Javier Martinez – super-featherweight
- Sultan Almohamed v Martin Caraballo – light-welterweight
- Steven Nelson v Raiko Santana – super-middleweight
- Marco Verde v Marcos Osorio Betancourt – super-middleweight
How do Canelo and Crawford's records compare?
Crawford and Alvarez have two of the best records in boxing.
Crawford, 37, is a two-weight undisputed champion and is unbeaten in 41 professional fights.
He has held world titles in four weight classes from lightweight to light-middleweight and was undisputed at light-middlweight and welterweight.
The Nebraska native has 31 knockouts on his record and is known for a punishing, spiteful style and an ability to go through the gears quickly when needed.
Crawford has big names on his resume including Amir Khan, Errol Spence Jr, Ricky Burns and Shawn Porter.
The dominant manner in which he beat domestic rival Spence in 2023 confirmed his status as a generational talent.
Crawford moved up to light-middleweight in preparation for this fight, winning another world title, but faces a fighter who is a natural super-middleweight.
Alvarez made his professional debut aged 15 and has racked up 67 bouts since then.
He has won world titles in four weight classes and is the only male fighter to hold all four belts in the super-middleweight division.
He has never been beaten at that weight. His losses came against Floyd Mayweather at light-middleweight in 2013 and to Dmitry Bivol at light-heavyweight in 2022.
Alvarez has beaten Gennady Golovkin, Sergey Kovalev, Callum Smith, Miguel Cotto and Billy Joe Saunders.
There is no big height difference but Crawford does have a reach advantage of 74 inches to Alvarez's 70 inches.
A lot has been made of Alvarez's potentially slowing down after 520 rounds under his belt. Crawford has fought 245 in comparison.
But the weight difference could be a deciding factor in this fight. Crawford has fought as low as lightweight, albeit last in 2014, while Alvarez has twice stepped up to light-heavyweight.
In a fight where both men might be evenly matched in terms of ability, the difference in weight could well be the decider.
What belts are on the line in Canelo v Crawford?
Alvarez will be defending his super-middleweight world titles.
The WBO, WBA, IBF and WBC belts will be on the line, as well as the Ring Magazine title.
Who are the judges for Canelo v Crawford?
The referee will be Thomas Taylor.
The three judges at ringside will be Tim Cheatham, Steve Weisfeld and Max DeLuca, all from the United States.
Interestingly, this is the same team which scored Manny Pacquiao's controversial majority draw with Mario Barrios in July.
What is the Canelo v Crawford fight week schedule?
Tuesday – grand arrivals from 02:00 BST
The Fontainebleau hotel hosts the arrivals of all the fighters at 18:00 local time.
Wednesday – open workouts 02:00 to 04:00
All the boxers will conduct a workout for the media from 18:00 local time at the Fontainebleau hotel.
Thursday – news conference from 02:00
The T-Mobile Arena hosts the news conference will feature the main event stars from 18:00 local time.
Friday – weigh-in from 17:00 & 02:00
There will be the official and ceremonial weigh-in on Friday. The official weights will be recorded in the morning before the weigh-in in front of the fans at the T-Mobile Arena from 18:00 local time.
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