On Sept. 13, 2025, a brawl for the super middleweight championship the WBA, WBC, IBF, and WBO titles took place at Allegiant Stadium, home of the NFL’s Las Vegas Raiders, between Saul “Canelo” Alvarez and Terence “Bud” Crawford.
Canelo was the fan favorite to win the fight, and many saw this as another easy win for him. Terence Crawford, whose record was 41-0, took the fight as an opportunity to show the world what he stood for by beating the “lion of the jungle” in a unanimous decision to take away the four belts that Canelo had held since 2021.
Canelo had beaten four world champions before his most recent loss, WBC super-middleweight titles against Callum Smith (2020), his WBO super-middleweight title against Billy Joe Saunders (2021), and his unified and undisputed super-middleweight title victories against Caleb Plant (2021) and Jose Zepeda (2023) to become the first undisputed champion in the division.
What does this mean for Terence “Bud” Crawford?
With the big win last Saturday, Terence Crawford has earned four belts to join his lone belt to make him one of the only boxing champions with five or more belts, and keeps his record clean at 42-0. Although Terence Crawford is 37 years old, he proved that he is more than capable of going against the best in business, especially now that he is the man to beat in boxing. A recent rumor from Terence Crawford’s coach stated that the Canelo vs. Crawford fight would only occur once, with little chance of a rematch. Recently, after the fight, Crawford was called out by UFC sensation Ilia Topuria. Topuria, who claimed he could beat both Crawford and Canelo in a boxing match, but that is a topic that will be brought up more later. For now, Crawford is the champion and has cemented his legacy as one of the greatest boxers of all time.
What does this mean for Saul “Canelo” Alvarez?
The great Mexican fighter Saul “Canelo” Alvarez faced an upset when he was the big favorite to win this fight. Canelo came into the fight as a four-time champion, and many labeled this as another “easy” fight. Canelo, however, discussed the boxing match in an interview after explaining how he was able to win the battle and read and find a way around Bud Crawford. Canelo has now lost three fights in his spectacular Hall of Fame career (Floyd Mayweather, Dimitri Bivol, Terence Crawford). The fight has left many thinking if this was the last time we will see Canelo in his prime or Canelo in general. Canelo reportedly made over $150 million on the fight alone, while his opponent (Terence Crawford) made only $50 million. While Canelo amassed a substantial amount of money, this loss took a significant cut into his legacy career, and he will have to find a way to bounce back before time runs out.
Overall, this fight was a fight for the ages! While Canelo fell short in a unanimous loss, all flowers must be given to the former four-time champion as a potential door has opened for an early retirement. Although Canelo can earn a substantial amount of money per fight, he has decided to shift his focus to his family and step away from boxing for now. While Trence Crawford is 37 years old, he might defend the belt 1-3 times before deciding to hang it up.
Crawford proved that no matter how many people are in favor of you, you use the odds and build a statement and cement a legacy in your favor.
