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Saul “Canelo” Alvarez will make a quick comeback and defend the WBA (Super), WBC and The Ring super middleweight titles against Avni Yildirim on Saturday night at Hard Rock Stadium in Miami Gardens, Fla.
Alvarez returns to action just two months after outscoring Callum Smith in a unanimous decision victory that earned him the super middleweight titles. Yildirim is relatively unknown but is recognized as the # 1 candidate by the WBC. He doesn’t nearly represent the threat that Smith made, and punters have recognized him. William Hill Sportsbook has Alvarez as an important favorite and almost a lock to retain his titles.
Considering that Alvarez hasn’t lost a fight since relinquishing a majority decision to Floyd Mayweather over seven years ago, it’s no surprise he’s the frontrunner in this fight. As for Yildirim, the Turkish fighter is 21-2 and he lost a spirited technical decision to Anthony Dirrell in 2019, but his knockout loss to Chris Eubank Jr. comes out like a sore thumb.
Canelo is aiming to end his mandatory title defense and move on to a potential unification fight against WBO title holder Billy Joe Saunders in May.
Sporting News follows live battle updates and turn-based highlights of Canelo Alvarez vs. Avni Yildirim and the under-map. Follow below for full results from the 2021 fight.
AFTER: Join DAZN to watch Canelo vs. Yildirim
Canelo Alvarez vs Avni Yildirim live updates, highlights
22:34: Canelo walks to the ring with a performance by pop star J Balvin. Dancers and pyro set the stage for the boxing pound for the king of the pound.
10:30 p.m .: Avni Yildirim made his way to the ring. He says Canelo has never fought a Turkish warrior before. I don’t know if that will matter, but it sounds good.
22h24: We’ve gotten used to long waits every time Canelo fights. After more than 30 minutes, we are finally at the national anthems. The main event is (finally) upon us!
9:50 p.m .: It’s time for the main event! Canelo Alvarez is set to defend his WBC, WBA (Super) and The Ring titles against WBC super middleweight Avni Yildirim. Few would expect Yildirim to be a real threat, but anything can happen. Law?
9:43 p.m.: Mcwilliams Arroyo won the provisional WBC title with a stoppage in the fifth round. Rodriguez just couldn’t take the pressure and was shifting from pillar to post. With no conceivable way to win, Rodriguez’s corner stopped the fight to save their fighter from further damage. We will have the Arroyo and Julio Cesar Martinez fight as soon as Martinez heals.
9:40 p.m.: As expected, this fight was one-sided. It took Arroyo a minute to figure out Rodriguez, but increased the pressure in the fourth round to score his first knockdown. Rodriguez is going to have to do something special to avoid getting arrested in fifth.
9:16 p.m .: The co-main event is next as McWilliams Arroyo takes on late replacement Abraham Rodriguez for the interim WBC flyweight title. Julio Cesar Martinez broke his hand earlier in the week and Rodriguez flew to Miami on Friday to take his place. Arroyo is expected to win, but Rodriguez is to be congratulated on his strengthening at the last minute.
9:10 p.m .: The hype train for Zhang Zhilei has derailed as he finds himself with a majority draw against Jerry Forrest despite knockouts in the first three rounds. But the big man was exhausted and allowed Forrest to take over for the second half of the fight. A point moored in the 9th round ended up making the difference with one judge seeing it for Forrest 95-93 and the other two judges having it even at 93-93. Zhang will definitely have to go back to the drawing board and figure out what went wrong.
9:07 p.m.: The fight certainly turned around as Zhang did next to nothing during the second half of the fight and lost a point in the 9th round as Forrest continues to beat him. Forrest buzzes Zhang at the end of the 10th with a combination and injures the big man. Zhang stumbles into the ring with Forrest chasing him. Zhang manages to survive but could we have discomfort on our hands?
8:51 p.m.: Zhang abandoned Forrest once in the first three laps but Forrest refuses to leave. It is clearly outdated and continues to move forward. As we close the sixth round, it looks like Zhang is completely gassed. Maybe Forrest can arrange a comeback?
8:22 p.m.: The heavyweights are about to throw a hand with gigantic 6ft 6in Chinese monster Zhang Zhilei taking on Jerry Forrest. Can Zhilei take his 23rd victory?
8:09 p.m .: Well, he didn’t get the knockout, but Diego Pacheco improved to 11-0 and went on eight rounds for the first time in his career with a unanimous decision victory. Pacheco controlled much of the action and seemed to learn a lot as he begins his climb in the title race by facing an opponent who has never been stopped before. It was not easy but it was final for Pacheco.
7:51 p.m.: We’re halfway through the fight and the two are still standing. Pacheco is in the lead but Gomez Jr. absolutely came to fight. It’s Pacheco’s activity behind the jab that has done the job so far. Can Gomez find a way to turn this fight around?
7:30 p.m .: Then there is another rising young talent as Diego Pacheco appears to remain undefeated against Rodolfo Gomez Jr. Pacheco, Rodolfo Gomez Jr. Pacheco’s height advantage will be canceled out here as both dominate at 6’4 “and share. a similar scope will be on the canvas?
7:24 p.m .: We live in Miami and it didn’t take long for Marc Castro to make his presence felt. Facing former UFC flyweight title challenger John Moraga, Castro made sure there wouldn’t be a surge of Clay Collard over veteran MMA by letting go his opponent three times in two rounds to get the stop. Castro let Morago down with the first jab he threw and it was all downhill from there. A combination dropped Moraga again in the second round and ended him with a short uppercut. Castro is improving to 2-0 and it’s obvious he’s going to be a challenge for a world title in the next 24 months.
How to watch Canelo vs. Yildirim
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Canelo vs. Yildirim Battle Card
- Canelo Alvarez vs. Avni Yildirim for Alvarez WBC / WBA Super Middleweight Titles
- McWilliams Arroyo defeats. Abraham Rodriguez via TKO Round 5 (1:41)
- Zhang Zhilei and Jerry Forrest face off for a majority draw (93-93, 93-93, 95-93)
- Diego Pacheco beats. Rodolfo Gomez Jr. by unanimous decision (79-73, 79-73 & 79-73)
- Marc Castro beats. John Moraga via TKO 2nd round (2:29)
- Aaron Aponte vs. Harry Gigliotti; junior welterweight
- Keyshawn Davis vs. Lester Brown; junior welterweight
- Alexis Espino vs. Ashton Sykes; super middleweight
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