ARTUR BETERBIEV reckons he has the beating of pound-for-pound king Canelo Alvarez.
Undisputed super-middleweight king Canelo is back in the crosshairs of the Russian following his return to the light-heavyweight division.
GETTYCanelo Alvarez is closing in on a return to the light-heavyweight division[/caption]
REXAnd unified 175lb champ Artur Beterbiev has set his sights on a showdown with the pound-for-pound king[/caption]
Canelo conceded both height and reach to Dmitry Bivol after stepping up to 175lbs back in May.
And the Mexican paid the price, losing for just the second time in his career.
Speaking before Alvarez’s shock defeat, Beterbiev told SunSport: “I disagree with your assessment that he is pretty much unbeatable.
“It is not true. He lost to [Floyd] Mayweather, he had equal fights verses GGG [Gennady Golovkin].
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“With that said, Canelo is undoubtedly a good fighter, he has the technique, he works nicely on the ring, and he has a good punch.
“Of course, I will do my best to beat him, because he is not unbeatable.
“His loss to Mayweather and equal fights vs. GGG is proof of that.
“I don’t consider myself worse than Mayweather or GGG as a fighter.
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“So the result of our fight will show who is the best between the two of us.”
Beterbiev reckons a dust-up with the Guadalajara gladiator would be a box-office smash.
He said: “I am sure that would be a mega-fight. It will be one of the huge events over the last years.”
Canelo’s ferocity was on full display in consecutive stoppage victories over Anvi Yildirim, Billy Joe Saunders and Caleb Plant.
He recently got back to winning ways, dispatching Gennady Golovkin in their trilogy match.
But Beterbiev doesn’t have the slightest concern about the punching power possessed by the four-weight world champion.
GETTYCanelo’s ferocious punch power doesn’t intimidate Beterbiev at all[/caption]
He said: “I think his technical side outweighs his physical force.
“His asset in the boxing is his thinking, he is a smart fighter.
“As for his punch power, I think there are fighters in our division who are stronger than him, who hit harder.
“I don’t follow up closely other fighters, but Canelo seems to be training hard and he gets what he wants.
“As for how I am going to beat him, I don’t want to reveal it to anyone.
“Generally speaking, I would be following the same guidelines I used in my previous fights.
“I will do my best to be fully prepared for this fight and stay 100% focused on it.”