Round 12: Canelo debuted in the Middle East

 By Mauricio Sulaimán – WBC President – Son of José Sulaimán

My dear father, José Sulaimán, taught us never to speak ill of anyone: “My son, if you don’t have anything good to say, it’s better not to talk about that person.” And that’s how I’ve tried to live my life. It’s because of this principle that I have a hard time talking about the fight we saw last Saturday, May 3, in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, during the traditional celebration of the Battle of Puebla, which always features the best fights of the year for the last four or five decades.

How sad to see the terrible performance of Cuban William Scull, who ran away and refused the fight! Cuban boxing is one of excellence and greatness, and what happened Saturday night was shameful, giving our sport a black eye. It’s one thing to fight strategically and find a way to counter your opponent to impose your style and win the fight, and another to go out dancing, running, and simply coasting through 12 rounds to avoid being knocked out, and that’s what Scull did.

Canelo became the undisputed WBC, WBO, WBA, and IBF super middleweight champion by defeating three undefeated champions in what was the best year of his career; in 2021, he defeated Callum Smith, Billy Joe Saunders, and Caleb Plant.

Eventually, the IBF required him to fight his mandatory defense. Against who do you think?

Yes, against William Scull. That’s how he ceased to be champion of all four organizations last year.

In order to regain the title of undisputed champion, Saúl Ávarez decided to fight Scull, who had won the IBF belt, which Canelo relinquished last year.

Mandatory challengers must be of the highest quality, especially when it comes to a prestigious champion. The WBC learned its lesson with Avni Yildirim, even though the COVID-19 pandemic had a lot to do with the Turk’s poor performance. Since then, we have adjusted our rules to dignify our sport and ensure that the mandatory challenger is of the highest quality.

Canelo had to face a series of complications to conquer the Middle Eastern market. As the most important boxer on the planet, he left his comfort zone to make his long-awaited international debut. A very long flight, schedules completely different from what we’re used to, customs, food, atmosphere, harsh humidity, and, if that weren’t enough, fighting at six in the morning against an opponent who only got on the plane to survive, with no intention of winning, but just to get paid.

At the end of the fight, Turki Alalshik announced the long-awaited fight for September at the Las Vegas Raiders’ Allegiant Stadium: Saúl Canelo Álvarez against undefeated three-time champion Terence Crawford.

Olympic medalist Marco Verde made his professional debut on this card, winning by knockout in one round, thus beginning what will surely be a glorious career for the Mexican.

In a great fight, Jaime Munguía avenged his loss last December to Frenchman Bruno Surace, who surprised him with a blasting blow. The Tijuana native looked great, cautious at the start and forceful at the close, winning a unanimous decision and returning to world contender status.

Three Mexicans won in Saudi Arabia on the May 5th celebration, specifically three boxers from the Ring Telmex-Telcel program created by Carlos Slim and José Sulaimán.

Mexico was present and expressed itself in various ways. The commemorative WBC belt caused a sensation, and the Xicoténcatl Warrior of Tlaxcalan culture was displayed in style.

The nearly 1,000 Mexicans living in Riyadh enjoyed seeing their champion up close, and we discovered a Mexican restaurant, Taco Taco, which serves delicious dishes such as birria, chilaquiles, enchiladas, and even pambazos. The most curious thing is that alcoholic beverages don’t exist in this country, and for the first time in history, hotels ran out of beer, even if it was non-alcoholic. Mexicans had to celebrate somehow, even if it was with zero-alcohol beer.

We left the arena at daylight, around eight in the morning, and a sandstorm was just starting, inexplicable to anyone who has never experienced it. The reality is that we are in the middle of the desert, and if there were no buildings, everything would be sand, and the weather phenomena maintain their natural state.

On Sunday, the closing card of the May 5th celebration took place in New York City with the show in Times Square. It continued in Riyadh, and it was Naoya Monstruo Inoue’s turn to fight Ramón Cárdenas in what was a knockout fight, against a brave Ramón Cárdenas who managed to send Inoue to the canvas.

Inoue and Cárdenas were named WBC Cares Ambassadors in our brain cancer awareness campaign.

Also, Mexican Rafael Divino Espinoza defended his world title against Edward Vázquez in a power-to-power fight.

DID YOU KNOW…?

The month of May is dedicated to brain cancer awareness and is represented by the color gray. Inoue and Cárdenas competed for a commemorative gray belt that contains words of encouragement and a beautiful plaque representing this serious disease.

TODAY’S STORY

In 2007, Rafael Mendoza, a renowned boxing manager, better known as La Cobra, called my dad and told him he had the future of Mexican boxing. Imagine how many times Don José had heard that from various managers around the world.

One day, La Cobra arrived, accompanied by Don Chepo Reynoso and a shy, red-haired young man, covered in freckles, but with a firm attitude. From that day on, my dad took a great liking to Saúl Álvarez, whom he repeatedly predicted would eventually become the next great figure in world boxing. Canelo won the World Junior Championship, the NABF North American Championship, the World Silver Championship, the WBC Super Welterweight, Middleweight,  Super Middleweight and light heavyweight World Championships, and already has an impressive collection of commemorative belts from May 5th and September 16th.

I welcome your comments at contact@wbcboxing.com