Christian Mbilli Says Canelo Alvarez Is Not the Same Fighter Anymore
Christian Mbilli believes Canelo Alvarez has slowed down and says he will test how much the star has left on October 31 in Riyadh.
Christian Mbilli is not buying the Canelo Alvarez highlight reel. The WBC super middleweight champion reviewed old knockout footage shared by DAZN Boxing and came away unimpressed by the version of Canelo he expects to face on October 31 in Riyadh.
"He's not the same guy right now," Mbilli told Boxing News 24.
Mbilli sees an older, slower Canelo than the one who was stopping opponents regularly earlier in his career. Per the report, Mbilli believes Canelo's speed and activity have diminished, with shorter bursts of offense replacing the sustained aggression that once made him one of the sport's most feared punchers.
The numbers back up part of that claim. Canelo's last knockout victory came against Caleb Plant in November 2021, when he stopped the American in the 11th round to become undisputed at 168 pounds. Since then, he has gone the distance in every outing. Demanding fights against Gennadiy Golovkin and Dmitry Bivol appear to have taken a toll.
Mbilli, a pressure fighter by nature, plans to test that theory head on. If Canelo cannot handle volume and sustained pressure the way he once did, Mbilli's style is tailor-made to expose it.
The fight takes place in Saudi Arabia with Mbilli's WBC title on the line. For Canelo, it is another trip abroad to prove the doubters wrong. For Mbilli, it is the chance to prove they were right.
I have been saying this for two years: Canelo is living off reputation at this point. The knockouts dried up after the Plant fight, and every time he goes twelve rounds now you can see him fading in the championship rounds. He is still elite defensively, still times counters better than anyone in boxing, but the engine is not what it used to be.
Mbilli is the worst possible matchup for a declining Canelo. He walks forward, throws in bunches, and does not care about eating one to land three. That pressure is going to test everything Canelo has left in the tank. If Canelo cannot hurt him early and establish respect, Mbilli is going to drown him in the second half of this fight.
I am picking Mbilli by late stoppage. Father Time is undefeated, and he has Canelo in trouble.
