Canelo: Now It's Personal

Mexican superstar, four-division world champion and unified WBC/WBO/WBA Super Middleweight Champion Canelo Álvarez previewed his highly anticipated undisputed 168-pound championship showdown during a media conference call Wednesday before he takes on undefeated IBF Super Middleweight Champion Caleb “Sweethands” Plant on Saturday, November 6 live on SHOWTIME PPV from the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas.

Tickets for the live event are on sale now and can be purchased at AXS.com. The event is promoted by Canelo Promotions and TGB Promotions and sponsored by Hennessy and Value.

Canelo will look to capture undisputed status for the first time in his Hall of Fame-caliber career as he returns to SHOWTIME where he made his pay-per-view main event debut in September 2013. The winner of the November 6 bout will stamp his name in the history books as the first undisputed 168-pound world champion of the four-belt era.

Here is what Canelo, along with his trainer and manager Eddy Reynoso, had to say Wednesday:

CANELO ÁLVAREZ

“I hope he has a good chin because he’s going to need it on fight night.

“I’m always ready. I just can’t wait. I feel strong and fast. With all of the talk, it’s become personal. He crossed a line. But I have to remain focused, because this is a very important fight for me.

“Caleb has good boxing skills. He has good movement and a good jab. But it’s nothing new for me. I know what I need to do. I need to be patient in the early rounds and then start doing my job.

“Even harder than getting to the top is staying there. That’s why I try to get better each and every day. That’s what I’ve been trying to do from my first fight up until now.

“I’m 100% focused on this fight. There’s nothing else crossing my mind. After it’s over, we’ll figure out who the next opponent will be.

“Being the undisputed champion is huge for my legacy. Not only would it be an honor to be the first Latin American fighter to do it, but there’s only a select club of fighters who have achieved this. Eddy and I said in the beginning that the goal was to be undisputed, and now we’re one fight away.

“Everyone knows what I’m going to do in the ring. When something is personal with me, it’s different. I have something special in my mind and I’m going to make it a great night for us.

“The pandemic made me have to slow down for about a year, so I’m thankful that I’ve been active since then. Things are going fast now, and I love it. I’m thankful to be in this position.”

EDDY REYNOSO, Canelo’s Trainer and Manager

“We’ve been training for four months and preparation has been great. Anticipation is sky-high and we can’t wait for November 6 to get here.

“Caleb is a skilled fighter who knows how to use his legs. If we come out too aggressive in the first few rounds, we’ll give the fight away. We need to be patient and get to the middle rounds so we can do what we want to do.

“Plant has three main attributes: power in his left hand, his movement and his defense. We’re going to come in and fight our own style. We have to use the style we know how to win with.

“Erislandy Lara is probably the closest comparison to Plant amongst Canelo’s past opponents, or even Shane Mosley earlier in Canelo’s career. In the end, no matter what challenge he presents, we’re not worried about our ability to come out victorious.

“This is going to be a tough fight on November 6. It’s going to be a challenge. But in the end, experience will prevail, and we will become undisputed like we set out to do all those years ago.”