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The key weapon Terence Crawford can use to shock Canelo
Only two men have beaten Canelo Alvarez in his 67-fight professional career that has spanned 20 years. He is one of boxing’s most difficult puzzles to solve.
Terence Crawford will look to make that three this weekend when he faces the Mexican great in Las Vegas, with super middleweight supremacy on the line.
Crawford is jumping up two weight divisions and has been inactive in recent years, but does he have the style to upset Canelo?
Well, one weapon that he could use to his advantage is his ability to switch-hit. The 37-year-old American is at ease when standing as an orthodox or southpaw fighter and this could be crucial on Saturday night.
Let’s take a look at how Crawford’s switch-hitting skills could take him to the biggest victory of his life.
Who has beaten Canelo before?(Leigh Dawney/Queensberry)
Canelo’s two losses have both come against orthodox boxers – Floyd Mayweather and Dmitry Bivol.
Mayweather used his defensive prowess to frustrate Canelo before finding the target with his own counter shots.
He also mixed up his attacks well, sensing when Canelo was taking a breather and then moving onto the front foot to rattle off a combination to catch the eye of the judges.
Bivol went about things slightly differently. He never allowed Canelo to settle into their 2022 bout as he used his imperious jab to keep his opponent at bay.
The light heavyweight champion grew in confidence as the fight progressed and started picking Canelo off at will, while the Mexican was simply unable to mount sustained attacks.
Both Mayweather and Bivol established control early on and did not let Canelo find his rhythm. Canelo likes to set his own tempo, but if Crawford can keep him at range with his slick orthodox skills, he will have success.
Has Canelo been troubled by southpaws?
Canelo has encountered several southpaws over the years and has never lost to one. However, some have posed him problems in the past.
In his fight before taking on Mayweather, Canelo faced Austin Trout in Texas and there was very little to split the pair for the majority of the contest.
A seventh-round knockdown swung the fight in Canelo’s favour and he ended up winning a unanimous decision, but many ringside observers felt Trout won his fair share of rounds as Canelo struggled to close down the distance and find the target.
Less than a year after losing to Mayweather, Canelo went back in with another southpaw, Erislandy Lara.
The Cuban star was regarded as one of the best defensive boxers in the world, and Canelo could not get near him at times.
He hardly landed a punch of note to Lara’s head, but did have some success to the body as he edged a split decision. The judges’ verdict left fans split, with some feeling Lara had done enough to get his hand raised.
In more recent times, Canelo defended his super middleweight titles against Britain’s Billy Joe Saunders four years ago.
Much like the Trout and Lara bouts, the opening exchanges were tightly contested before Canelo finally found a breakthrough in the eighth round as he landed an uppercut that caused Saunders’ eye to swell up.
Saunders was pulled out by his corner at the end of the round to seal another victory for Canelo.
The Mexican superstar has always found a way against southpaws but it has rarely been easy and Crawford may want to put his problem-solving to the test again this weekend.
Michelle Farsi/Matchroom Boxing
Is Terence Crawford the ultimate switch-hitter?
Some fighters are so gifted they can switch between stances during fights. But they tend to look more comfortable in one over the other. Crawford is different.
The unbeaten four-weight world champion is able to move between orthodox and southpaw without missing a beat and it can have a fight-changing effect.
A prime example of this came back in November 2020 when Crawford fought Kell Brook.
Crawford started the fight as an orthodox fighter but could not nail down his timing or control of distance.
Brook looked comfortable early on and arguably won the first two rounds. But Crawford made a key adjustment at the start of the third by switching to southpaw.
He immediately began to have more success and in the fourth round he wobbled Brook with a short right hook that the Brit did not see coming.
Brook hit the canvas and a follow-up barrage of punches forced the referee to step in. Crawford had spotted the problem and completely turned the fight around in just two rounds.
(Getty Images)
Which stance will Terence Crawford use against Canelo?
Crawford has fought almost exclusively as a southpaw in his recent outings and used the stance to great effect in his career-best performance against Errol Spence in 2023.
It is likely that he will come out as a southpaw when the opening bell rings on Saturday night.
But don’t be surprised if he switches things up midway through the fight, especially if he is not having things all his own way.
It has been proven that upsetting Canelo’s rhythm is vital when devising a gameplan that can beat him.
By switching from southpaw to orthodox at the drop of a hat, Crawford can make Canelo think twice about his path to victory and this confusion could play into the American’s hands as he bids to become a three-weight undisputed champion.
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