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Ryan Hockensmith
THE RAIN FEELS like needle pricks pelting down on umbrellas and faces on Sunday morning in New York Metropolis. And but, Canelo Alvarez is carrying sun shades.
He is on the second leg of a three-leg tour to advertise his upcoming Sept. 13 mega-fight towards Terence Crawford. Many of the assembled media beneath the Javits Heart is both shaking out or saying goodbye to their umbrellas — raindrops over New York Metropolis on an 80-plus diploma day in June at all times appear to have somewhat further mustard on them.
However Alvarez is dry and gleaming. Earlier that morning, he had bought a shiny new, special-edition Jacob & Co. look ahead to somewhat beneath $500,000, paid for on his no-max bank card. Possibly that is why he wants the sun shades.
“Nearly a half million,” he clarifies. However he has a giant, huge smile when he says that. He is happy with his buy.
He plows by way of roughly half-hour of a gentle string of interviewers introducing themselves after which turning on a digital camera in his face. So, the sun shades begin to really feel like preventative eye well being care somewhat than a vogue assertion, boredom masks or hangover disguise. The literal glare he’s beneath all day is an optometry nightmare.
Canelo would not smile usually or get animated throughout interviews. The one time he exhibits some emotion is when he talks about golf (man, Canelo Alvarez loves golf). The remainder of the time, he’s all enterprise hyping the struggle, which, whether or not you notice it but or not, goes to be a significant second in any sports activities fan’s life come Sept. 13 on Netflix. It is the primary Zuffa Boxing occasion, promoted by Dana White, as a part of the TKO model. And it options in all probability the 2 greatest, most vital fighters of the post-Mayweather period. For die-hard followers who’ve grey hairs or no hair in any respect due to how usually one of the best boxers have circled one another and by no means really fought over the previous 25 years, that is Propecia.
“That is so enormous for boxing,” Canelo says. “I am glad to be concerned with these sorts of fights that so many individuals can see. All people has Netflix.”
Half an hour later, in a room 20 toes away, Crawford is much more subdued, doing the identical gauntlet of interviews. And so they each nonetheless need to do the information convention later that afternoon. It is arduous responsible the fighters for not cracking jokes and dancing for the cameras. The entire group was in Saudi Arabia 48 hours earlier, then flew to NYC for this occasion at Fanatics Fest, then they’re all off to Las Vegas for the ultimate cease on Friday.
That is all enterprise for them, and based mostly on a sure current picture, that is how followers need it.
— TURKI ALALSHIKH (@Turki_alalshikh) June 19, 2025
THE PICTURE is making individuals very grumpy.
Turki Alalshikh, the person most answerable for making this struggle occur, posted a photograph on X final Friday that confirmed him on the head of a dinner desk with Crawford and Alvarez sitting throughout from each other. Alalshikh, chairman of the Normal Leisure Authority and president of Saudi Arabia boxing, had summoned them to a dinner of Center Jap delicacies to have a good time the kickoff of their hype tour.
When that picture circulated Friday evening into Saturday, struggle followers didn’t prefer it. They complained that Crawford and Canelo appeared too chummy consuming throughout a desk from each other.
Fight sports activities followers might be so foolish on the subject of how fighters ought to promote, compete after which transfer on afterward. Within the run-up to a struggle, boxers are alleged to despise one another. Stare-downs are obligatory, and the seems to be ought to kill. On struggle evening, the combatants ought to barely be capable to include themselves earlier than the violence begins. The struggle ought to then be a relentless show of fireworks, and blood is at all times welcome. When the struggle is over, the fighters ought to come collectively and shake fingers, even perhaps hug a couple of times. They should be sure you present respect to the whole crew of the opposing fighter.
Dinner earlier than a giant struggle? Outrageous.
However that is a reasonably unfair response. NFL gamers attempt to de-cleat their outdated school buddies for 3 hours on Sundays, then trade jerseys afterward. A bitter NHL playoff collection at all times ends with a handshake line and congratulations. Each of those elite fighters, Canelo and Crawford, in all probability deserve the advantage of the doubt that they are going to be capable to sit throughout a dinner desk after which attempt to beat the dwelling daylights out of one another two months later.
Nevertheless, each fighters additionally stated that having dinner collectively was somewhat awkward. They as soon as had dinner a few years — and weight lessons — in the past. Crawford was as soon as the undisputed 135-pound champ, and now he is shifting up two extra weight lessons from 154 to 168 to tackle Alvarez. So at their first dinner, they appeared like two celebrity ships that may at all times move one another within the evening.
But, right here we’re. On Sunday, each fighters say they’ve by no means had dinner with an opponent earlier than, and so they will not be doing it once more anytime quickly. Crawford had already eaten earlier than he obtained to the dinner, so he spent the hour or so nibbling on meals simply to be well mannered. Canelo did not eat a lot, both, and admitted he spent the whole time fascinated by punching Crawford within the face someday quickly. “I do not actually like this sort of factor,” he tells me. “I do not prefer to be concerned with my opponents. However let me inform you one thing: I noticed him and I actually need to punish him. I used to be pondering, I’m going to f— this man up.”
Alvarez has his sun shades on when he says this. However in some way, it nonetheless appeared like you possibly can inform that he has unhealthy intentions deliberate for Sept. 13.
THE NEWS CONFERENCE opens an hour later with Michael Buffer on stage. He is 80 years outdated now however nonetheless seems to be fairly regal and Buffery. Followers drown him out just a few instances, however when he launches into the beginning of his, “Are you prepared?” spiel main as much as, “Let’s get able to rumble,” he nonetheless appears to be hitting 93 mph on the radar gun.
The group is rowdy for the whole 30-minute information convention. Crawford has a vocal minority throughout the viewers. However this can be a Canelo crowd, as most are in boxing. Canelo is 34 now and had his professional boxing debut two years earlier than the iPhone was invented. He has been body-shotting the breath out of major occasion boxers since about 2010. That is how he is earned someplace north of $500 million as knowledgeable boxer and may afford a Godfather watch. He has earned his cash, and his lots, too.
Crawford comes out first. He principally will get jeers, however some cheers sneak by way of the noise. He’s an equally outstanding athlete, having dispatched all 41 boxers he has ever confronted. And he is a kind of fighters whose undefeated file nonetheless looks like an underestimation of his brilliance. On the very, only a few events when he has ever been hit arduous, there is a tendency to instantly suppose he will need to have slipped or gotten distracted by one thing. He not often appears hurtable.
Canelo comes out a minute later, and the sun shades are nonetheless on as he sits down. Buffer’s introduction will get fully swallowed up by the cheers. The intros are clearly a 10-8 spherical for Canelo.
Crawford wins the information convention, although. He would not say a lot, however his phrases land, somewhat like how he tends to choose his spots within the ring, too. At one level, Alvarez asks Alalshikh to make the ring smaller for this struggle in order that Crawford cannot run away. Crawford instantly fires again, “The one working I will do is upside his head. And he has a giant head, too.”
White and the fighters take questions for about quarter-hour, then the information convention concludes with an announcement that there will probably be a faceoff. White stands in the midst of the stage — he is the preeminent fighter-separator in fight sports activities historical past. He seems to be sturdier than ever in a Canelo vs. Crawford T-shirt. He deserves a black belt for his hard-earned skill to carry up his fingers in a “the fish that I caught was this large” place that retains fighters shut sufficient to be in the identical image however far sufficient aside to ensure a brawl would not occur without cost a month earlier than the precise struggle.
The tables are cleared out as quick as attainable, and the fighters stroll off reverse sides of the stage. These stare-downs will occur a number of extra instances over the subsequent six weeks, so there’s a professional wrestling really feel to the repeated theatrics of them. Canelo and Crawford simply sat calmly 20 toes away from one another for half-hour. Now, they’re alleged to stroll off the stage, then march again throughout and chest up with rage of their eyes. Maybe this may appease the people who find themselves very mad about them consuming dinner collectively.
The fighters stride to the center, and White will get wedged in between. However Crawford blows previous White and into Canelo’s area. For the primary time all day, Canelo’s shades aren’t on his face. The 2 fighters jaw for about 5 seconds, after which Canelo provides Crawford a strong push. Crawford comes flying again towards him, and White tries to maintain far between the 2 fighters. White will get a legit “uh-oh” look on his face in the course of the tussle, although most observers thought the entire thing appeared like a WWE scuffle designed to promote a struggle. Possibly that is proper, however within the room, the warmth felt actual.
The 2 fighters separate after which come again collectively once more for a second take. This one lasts a superb 20 seconds or so complete, and White finally relaxes his arms a bit within the center. He holds up the Ring Journal belt that the corporate says value $188,000 to make, however Crawford and Canelo by no means take their eyes off one another.
Alvarez continues to be in the course of the picture op. His left hand is at his aspect, and his proper hand is barely increased and balled up, coiled for a full ship if mandatory. His sun shades are off, and so are future dinner plans.