Canelo Alvarez To Fight Unbeaten Brit Callum Smith In December Super-Fight

Boxing's biggest star Canelo Alvarez is set to fight unbeaten super-middleweight champion Callum Smith in a blockbuster December showdown.

The news is a huge surprise because, as recently as a week ago, Mexico's pound-for-pound king was locked in a dispute with DAZN over his £278 million TV deal. But the contract has now been terminated, Canelo has left Golden Boy Promotions and is keen to fight before the end of the year.

Few in boxing predicted the 30-year-old would pick such a dangerous opponent, but ESPN are reporting that both Alvarez and Smith have reached an agreement to meet next month, with the AT&T Stadium in Texas lined up as a possible venue.

Smith is one of Britain's best boxers, widely seen as the worldwide No 1 in the 168lb division after his 2018 KO of George Groves. At 6ft 3in, he will have a significant size advantage over Alvarez.

But Canelo is used to fighting - and stopping - bigger opponents, as he showed in his last fight: a 2019 knockout of light-heavyweight Sergey Kovalev.

Alvarez is the biggest draw in American boxing, having taken that mantle from Floyd Mayweather. His 2013 defeat to Mayweather is Canelo's only loss in 56 pro fights, though his two wars with Gennady Golovkin could have gone either way.

Those two super-fights took place at middleweight and Canelo seems to have set his sights on conquering a new division, with Smith standing in his way.

It looks a risky fight even for someone of Alvarez's superb all-round skill set. Though perhaps Team Canelo were encouraged by how surprisingly poor Smith looked in edging a decision against his fellow Brit John Ryder in his last fight.

Both boxers boast knockout power, so it could be an enthralling fight if it does take place, as is reportedly planned for either 18 or 19 December. As a bonus treat for boxing fans, it's rumoured that rising superstar (and friend of Canelo) Ryan Garcia wants to fight Britain's Luke Campbell on the undercard.

Does Callum Smith have any chance of upsetting Canelo Alvarez and derailing the biggest superstar in boxing? Let us know in the comments.

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