Chris Eubank Jr. has come out of nowhere to emerge as the favourite to problem Canelo Alvarez for his undisputed tremendous middleweight championship in September on PPV.
A Match Made in Boxing Heaven
ESPN Knockout’s Salvador Rodriguez studies that the previous IBO 168-lb champion Eubank Jr. (33-3, 24 KOs) has taken the pole place forward of Edgar Berlanga and Jermall Charlo as the following potential opponent for the famous person Canelo Alvarez.
Selecting the favored Britsh fighter Eubank Jr works nicely for the UK followers, as he’s a family title over there, they usually’ll be happy that one in all their very own is taking up Canelo for all of the gold.
Moreover, deciding on Eubank Jr. gained’t anger the USA followers as it could if Canelo have been to pick out the undeserving Edgar Berlanga or the inactive Jermall Charlo. U.S. followers can be stomping mad if Canelo chosen Berlanga or Jermall.
Canelo (61-2-2, 39 KOs) wants a tune-up to organize him for his potential mega-fight in opposition to Terence Crawford in early 2025, with somebody who has boxing means and a method that’s at the least an approximation of how the Nebraska native fights.
Avoiding Pointless Backlash
The hulking, Sherman Tank-like Berlanga would have been ineffective in aiding Canelo in getting ready for Crawford’s preventing model.
Furthermore, Canelo would have been royally raked over the coals by followers if he’d chosen the New Yorker Berlanga as a result of lots of them view him as simply searching for a payday in opposition to Canelo and with little interest in taking dangerous fights in opposition to harmful opposition like David Morrell.
Jermall Charlo would have been fighter for Canelo to make use of as a tune-up in 2019 when he was nonetheless lively, engaged, and bold. Sadly, that model of Jermall now not exists and certain won’t ever return.
Of their rematch in Manchester, England, Eubank Jr. is coming off a career-best tenth-round knockout win over Liam Smith on September 2nd, 2023. The win for the 34-year-old Eubank Jr. avenged his fourth-round upset knockout defeat in his earlier combat in opposition to Liam on January twenty first of final yr in Manchester.
A Stepping Stone to Crawford?
Utilizing Eubank Jr. as his opponent will allow Canelo to sharpen up his instruments to carve up Terence Crawford within the first quarter of subsequent yr, offered the Nebraska native wins his August third combat in opposition to WBA junior middleweight champion Israil Madrimov on the BMO Stadium in Los Angeles, California.
