Boxing greatness is often judged on how fighters respond to a defeat and Canelo Alvarez faces that test this Saturday evening, when he goes toe-to-toe with Christian Mbilli.
There is no doubt Alvarez, a former world champion in four different weight divisions, will go down in boxing history as a legend of the sport.
His reputation will take another step up though if he can win back the WBC super-middleweight title when he faces Mbilli in Riyadh this weekend.
Canelo Alvarez v Christian Mbilli Tips Preview
It has been 14 months since Canelo was last competitively in the ring, when he lost a unanimous decision to veteran Terence Crawford in Las Vegas.
That was a second defeat in his last eight fights for the Mexican, but despite reaching the age of 36, he still feels he can claim another belt.
Canelo, who was beaten by Dimitry Bivol in May 2022, now comes up against a fighter who is five years younger than him.
Frenchman Mbilli, who resides in Canada, is the current WBC super-middleweight champion - following Crawford’s decision to vacate - and remains unbeaten after 30 professional fights.
The 31-year-old’s last fight, against Lester Martinez last September, ended in a split draw but he had won his previous 29 contests - 24 of those by knockout.
In his prime, Canelo would have almost certainly been too good for his opponent, but recent performances suggest this might be a bridge too far, even for the man from Guadalajara.
Alvarez, who has previously stated he would retire from boxing when he reaches 37, was outboxed by Crawford and it’s worth noting that his last eight fights have all gone the distance.
Gruelling contests against the likes of William Scull, Edgar Berlanga, John Ryder and Gennadiy Golovkin may well have taken their toll.
Alvarez is preparing for his 69th career fight, more than double the amount of fights of Mbilli, and there will be question marks over his fitness and desire.
Canelo Alvarez v Christian Mbilli - Tale of the Tape
Canelo Alvarez | Christian Mbilli | |
Record: | 63-2-3 | 29-1-0 |
Age: | 36 | 31 |
Birthplace | Guadalajara, Mexico | Yaounde, Cameroon |
Height: | 5' 7" | 5' 8 ½" |
Stance: | Orthodox | Orthodox |
Last Fight: | Lost (UD) Terence Crawford (Sept 2025) | Draw (SD) Lester Martinez (Sept 2025) |
KO%: | 61.9% | 82.76% |
Canelo Alvarez v Christian Mbilli Top Tips
We don’t know quite how good Mbilli will turn out to be, but he appears to be on the way up while Canelo might only be a handful of months away from retirement.
The Cameroon-born fighter has racked up strong wins over the likes of Sergiy Derevyanchenko, Mark Heffron and Maciej Sulecki in the last two years.
Although his record doesn’t look as impressive as Canelo's, Mbilli has height, speed and age on his side and that could see him cause his opponent major problems.
The man they call ‘Solid’ is expected to target the body of the veteran, whilst trying to push the tempo in his attempts to cause an upset.
With all of Canelo’s last eight fights going the full 12 rounds, it would not be a big surprise to see Saturday’s clash going the distance.
Alvarez may not be the fighter he was, but his determination is likely to see him hang around, even if his opponent is in the ascendency.
Meanwhile, five of Mbilli’s last 11 contests have gone to the judges and with him fighting in Saudi Arabia for the first time, it might take him a bit of time to adjust to the conditions.
Canelo has only fought once outside of either the US or Mexico, which was his Unanimous Decision victory over William Scull in Riyadh last year.
All odds displayed on this page were correct at the time of writing and are subject to withdrawal or change at any time.
