Canelo Alvarez is boxing's biggest box office draw, but his return to the ring on Saturday to face Edgar Berlanga hasn't generated the buzz of a true “mega-fight.” Much of the buzz surrounding the bout has centered on what Canelo will do after 2025.
The 34-year-old Mexican superstar will defend his three super middleweight titles against unbeaten 27-year-old Berlanga (22-0, 17 KOs), a Puerto Rican native from New York who was chosen as this weekend's opponent due to the historic rivalry between Mexican and Puerto Rican fighters.
The intensity of this rivalry has faded in recent years, but that alone makes Berlanga a more attractive option than anyone else Canelo could face on that date.
David Benavidez was the most anticipated opponent for Canelo in 2024, but he is now at light heavyweight and appears to have given up on a fight with Canelo. With Benavidez gone and Jaime Munguia losing in May, Alvarez is left with few options in terms of name recognition.
At least Berlanga got a strong push from ESPN and Top Rank when he started his career with 16 consecutive first-round stoppage wins. But the enthusiasm quickly faded as Berlanga faced stronger opponents and started to pull off lackluster decision wins. It wasn't long before Top Rank and Berlanga parted ways, at which point the young fighter signed with Matchroom and set his sights on a money fight with Canelo.
He has the power, but few see him as having a chance of winning. Canelo is certainly past his prime, but he is still a world-class fighter and the impression is that Berlanga just isn't up to his level.
So if Canelo fends off Berlanga as expected, what's next for him in 2025? That's not enough time for a super middleweight to have much more commercial appeal right now, and the middleweight division has been a weak one for a while now, with no clear contender to move up and challenge Alvarez.
Canelo also made it pretty clear in his negotiations with Turki Ararcik that he was not joining the many fighters and promoters in the sport vying to work on the Saudi promoter's terms. Ararcik was trying to set up a big-money bout between Canelo and Terence Crawford. Crawford is a star fighter and pound-for-pound standout, but he has only fought above 147 pounds once in his career, and that was at 154, still two weight classes below Canelo.
At super middleweight, the likely contenders would be unbeaten Christian Mbili, a 29-year-old French-Cameroonian boxer who built his professional career out of Quebec, or Matchroom's Diego Pacheco. At 23, Pacheco should not be rushed into fighting someone like Canelo, as it could stunt his development as a boxer.
Canelo could also move up a weight class. He has fought at light heavyweight several times, but a dark horse option would be a move to cruiserweight, where the limit is 200 pounds. He's hinted at the idea for a few years now, and the winner of November's bout between titleholder Gilberto “Zurdo” Ramirez and Chris Billam Smith could interest him, especially if the money is there.
Canelo will likely remain one of boxing's biggest attractions, but there is limited time to see him in the ring and limited attractive in-ring options. Things can change quickly, though, so by the time the calendar flips to 2025 and Canelo's next fight date is in May, a real contender could emerge.
