Wild Twist Will Have Canelo Fight Jermell Charlo In September
Well Canelo Alvarez is going to be fighting a Charlo. It’s just the different one than what we were all thinking.
This after a wild Friday afternoon twist for the undisputed super middleweight champion Alvarez, who announced simultaneously on social media with undisputed Junior middleweight champion Jermell Charlo that it will be those two and not Jermell’s twin brother and WBC middleweight champion Jermall, who will be fighting Canelo.
Their social media photos said it all and sent the boxing media and fans into a tizzy. First, Canelo,
UNDISPUTED vs UNDISPUTED
🗓️ Sept. 30
📍Las Vegas pic.twitter.com/pAlSN5VszU— Canelo Alvarez (@Canelo) June 30, 2023
And from Jermell Charlo,
Our Dan Rafael had learned earlier on Friday that Canelo’s next bout would be September 30th with the assumption that it would be against Jermall Charlo, the WBC’s top middleweight for the last four years.
That date was later than the Mexican Independence Weekend date of September 16th, because the UFC had already moved in and reserved the T-Mobile Arena for their “UFC 290” pay-per-view on that date.
Now, Jermall Charlo has not been in the ring in 2 years, since he decisioned Juan Montiel in defense of his WBC 160 lb. belt. Meanwhile, his twin brother completed his collection of four world titles at 154 lb. with a TKO win over Brian Castano in May of 2022 in Carson, California.
So Much For Charlo-Tszyu
Jermell Charlo was slated to fight Australian unbeaten top WBO Contender Tim Tszyu this past January before suffering a broken left hand in two places that postponed what would have been his first undisputed defense indefinitely.
Next, Tszyu defeated former WBC champ Tony Harrison in March in his homeland, and Charlo was an in-studio live analyst for Showtime and proclaimed that his left hand was healed and he was ready to fight the Australian. However, that never materialized this Summer and Tszyu eventually decided to fight Mexican Carlos Ocampo, while waiting on Jermell Charlo.
Tszyu, who’s now the interim WBC junior middleweight champ, destroyed Ocampo in under 2 minutes two weeks ago. But, unfortunately for the prominent Australian star, he is apparently not going to get a shot at all at the 154 lb Charlo. The WBO had put an edict on Jermell Charlo to fight Tszyu by September 30th or he would be stripped of their world title and Tszyu would be elevated.
That is now likely to happen for Tszyu and soon.
It is also an intriguing historic twist is Alvarez will fight another undisputed champion in his latest matchup, although none of Charlo’s belts will be on the line. This, as he’s moving up two full weight classes to fight for Canelo’s belts.
Friday evening Rafael further confirmed that not only is the fight Jermell, not Jermall, Charlo for Canelo, but it will be September 30th in Las Vegas at the T-Mobile Arena.
Canelo was last in the ring in May for his return to his Mexican homeland, as he dominated England’s John Ryder over 12 rounds in front of over 50,000 of his partisan fans at a Guadalajara soccer stadium. It was the first world title fight for Alvarez in Mexico in over a decade.
As we wrote last week, Alvarez, 59-2-2, 39 KOs, surprisingly signed a multi-fight deal with Premier Boxing Champions and Showtime with the bout this Fall being the first PPV and the and now, the junior middleweight champ Charlo, as the opponent.
