Canelo Alvarez is the best boxer around right now, and he’s developed such a strong reputation that he can pick and choose who he fights next. There’s been a ton of talk regarding who he might choose to go up against in 2024, and it seems like the answer might finally be here.
Jermall Charlo Anticipated To Fight Canelo Alvarez Next
Rumors have been swirling that Canelo has already decided upon who his next opponent will be, and that matchup is supposed to be Jermall Charlo. ProBoxTV reporter Alan Dawson said a “source said Jermall Charlo remained a frontrunner to box Canelo on May 4th” and it looks like that’s correct. Charlo recently took two years off of boxing but returned to the ring back in November to knock down Jose Benavidez. Of course, Canelo will prove to be a far stiffer test for Charlo.
The reason why Charlo feels to be the right option is due to the story. Canelo was supposed to square off with Charlo not long ago, but he decided against doing so because Charlo spent so much time out of boxing. Since he’s returned and picked up a huge win, he’s popped back up on the radar.
Throughout his career, Charlo is 32-0 with 22 knockouts being recorded. He’s taken down the likes of Austin Trout, Corneilus Brundage, and Sergiy Derevyanchenko just to name a few. However, the biggest problem continues to be his inactivity, with so much time taken off in between. Still though, the story just works itself out, with Canelo previously beating Charlo’s twin brother, Jermell. Jermell was beaten in a unanimous decision victory, and Jermall will hope to avenge that defeat.
Jaime Munguia Keeps Getting Left Out
Another top option for Canelo would be Jaime Munguia, though it keeps feeling like he’s the odd one out in the upcoming list of matchups. Munguia has waited for some time to meet up with Canelo in the ring, and he has the resume to back up a potential matchup. He’s worked to a record of 43-0 with 34 knockouts, and just recently notched yet another TKO with a win over John Ryder this past week.
It feels like the one thing really holding Munguia back is his resume, with only a handful of premier victories up to this point. That doesn’t take away from his undefeated record at all, only that he hasn’t met with some of the top-tier fighters yet to show what he can do against the best of the best.
Fans Want David Benavidez
The final option and seemingly the most obvious is David Benavidez. Benavidez is also undefeated with a 28-0 record with a whopping 24 knockouts to his name. A few months ago, we watched him dismantle Demetrius Andrade in Las Vegas, winning eight of his last 10 fights by stoppage now. Fans have been clamoring to see a battle between Canelo and Benavidez for a while now, but it yet again feels like that matchup won’t be coming. One thing worth noting here is that Benavidez is holding onto the WBC interim title, which feels like something Canelo would want to regain as soon as possible by lining up with him next.
At the end of the day though, there is nothing that’s been confirmed as of right now. ESPN in particular has been fueling the fire that Jermall Charlo is going to be taking on Canela next, likely within the next couple of months if everything goes according to plan. ESPN also believes that Canelo will turn his attention towards Terence Crawford afterwards, seemingly looking away from both Benavidez and Munguia. It does feel like a professional announcement will be made sooner rather than later.
