September 16, 2022 7:45 pm ET
Canelo Alvarez is in a no-win situation if you put a guaranteed windfall aside.
If the Mexican star defeats Gennadiy Golovkin in their third fight Saturday, critics will say he took down a 40-year-old who is past his prime and moving up in weight for the fight. If he loses, it will come against that old man and be his second consecutive setback after a one-sided loss to Dmitry Bivol in May.
In other words, a victory wouldn’t have much of an impact on Alvarez’s legacy given Golovkin’s current limitations; a loss could damage it significantly.
What’s the upside for Alvarez?
Of course, he probably doesn’t have much to worry about. He’s a significant favorite to win the third fight against his rival – about 4½-1 – after a controversial draw in 2017and a majority decision victory the following year.
If he has his hand raised on Saturday, he will have bounced back from the loss to Bivol and can finally put his bumpy history with Golovkin behind him. He could then focus on starting new rivalries, which is what he’d like.
However, potential disaster lurks ominously around the corner of Las Vegas Boulevard and Tropicana Avenue in Las Vegas, the site of T-Mobile Arena.
Golovkin isn’t what he used to be but he can’t be written off entirely, as some seem to be doing. He has only lost once in his 16-year professional career, after all. And he remains an elite fighter if you put stock in his middleweight titles and four victories following the second fight with Alvare
