Tension is rising between WBC super middleweight world champion Christian Mbilli and his next challenger Saul “Canelo” Alvarez ahead of their September 12 clash.
Canelo irritated the titleholder by claiming that his chances of beating him and retaining the belt are zero. The Mexican joked that Mbilli probably believes he can take advantage of his advancing age and wear and tear, failing to understand that he would not beat him even if he were fifty years old. The French boxer of Cameroonian descent fired back, promising war:
“I have a good style to beat Canelo. I am an amazing fighter. I have good power and speed. I have all of the abilities to beat Canelo and win this fight. I don’t care about his age. It’s about our abilities to box. I think it’s the perfect time for me. … I’m not changing my style. I will put pressure, and we are going to see if he can deal with this.”
Then, addressing Canelo directly, Mbilli added:
“Be ready – you’re going to be surprised in September. You will regret being in that ring. … It will be an incredible show and an incredible night and a fight of a decade.”
Christian Mbilli became world champion without winning his title in the ring. The WBC decided to elevate him from interim champion to full world champion after Terence Crawford, the previous titleholder, refused to pay the fees requested by the organization led by Mauricio Sulaiman and was consequently stripped of the belt. Crawford retired shortly afterward, meaning that the super middleweight world titles would have become vacant anyway.
The last time he stepped into the ring, Mbilli fought to a draw against unbeaten Guatemalan boxer Lester Martinez in a hellish battle. The French-Cameroonian fighter is a true ring warrior, accustomed to throwing almost every punch with maximum power and usually paying little attention to defense.
In his prime, Canelo thrived against this kind of opponent thanks to his extraordinary counterpunching skills, but many believe the Mexican has entered the downward phase of his career, which makes this stylistic matchup particularly intriguing.