KEY POINTS

  • Saunders plans to seal the deal with Alvarez
  • Saunders is confident he is the fighter who can compete with Alvarez
  • Saunders could be Alvarez's foe for Cinco De Mayo weekend

Canelo Alvarez remains the talk of the town after he dominated Callum Smith last Saturday.

It was a dominant show for the Mexican and one boxer who likely caught a glimpse of that is WBO super middleweight champion Billy Joe Saunders.

Before the pandemic broke out, it will be recalled that a fight between Alvarez and Saunders was in the air. Unfortunately, the clash failed to come to fruition.

However, that does not mean that the 31-year-old is shelving plans to face the Mexican sensation.

Saunders is looking to book a 12-round encounter with Alvarez in 2021. He revealed this when he appeared on IFL TV.

“We’re pushing very hard for the Canelo fight. I believe in my heart that I have the tools to beat Canelo. I need to be prepared to beat that man and I will. I’m waiting for the chance,” Saunders said.

Saunders vows to exhaust all means to get the fight done. He knows it a fight that he needs to make, something that may define him.

Things could be different in 2021 and he believes it will be a big fight to make.

As far as his chances, the English pug is confident he has the tools to hand Alvarez his second loss. Canelo’s only loss was at the hands of Floyd Mayweather Jr. in 2013. But most know that a lot has changed since then.

“You have to have more than a boxing brain to beat Canelo. You have to have that graft around you. It’s a good fight and it’s one that should happen. It’s a unification and one of the biggest fights out there. I believe on my night, I have every tool in the box to beat Canelo Alvarez,” Saunders stated.

Had their fight come to fruition in 2020, most felt that he faced tall odds to overcome the Mexican. They felt Alvarez was just too powerful for the Englishman.

Considering the latest performance of Alvarez was more than impressive, the odds are likely to stay the same or grow even bigger against the WBO champion.

Saunders may be left to wait. Alvarez will be fighting again in February to defend his WBC title. The Mexican is likely to fight again by Cinco De Mayo weekend with no word on who he will face next. That could be Saunders or even perhaps Gennady Golovkin in a trilogy fight.

Billy Joe Saunders
Billy Joe Saunders Jayne Kamin-Oncea | Getty Images