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While Edgar Berlanga isn’t the opponent fans were hoping to see standing across from unified super middleweight champion Saul “Canelo” Alvarez this Saturday night, both challenger and champion believe it’s the right fight for them. However, that doesn’t mean Berlanga has nothing but good things to say about his pound-for-pound great opponent.
“Just I don’t like how he was smiling in my face and stuff [at pre-fight press conferences],” Berlanga said during DAZN’s ‘Off the Cuff.’ “I just seen him smiling in my face and I’m from New York, bro. I’m Puerto Rican, bro. A guy that’s smiling in my face, I want to smack the shit out of him, you know what I’m saying? Because I already know how he’s thinking with a smirk. It’s more like he’s overlooking me, that he thinks I’m a cake, you feel me? He thinks like I’m a small platter, that’s easy work.
“For me, I hate dudes like that. Like he’s a female, you know what I’m saying? Like a diva. … He’s the type like if his shirt is wrinkled on this side he’ll start crying. That’s the type of person he is. And then he has all this money, he has all the fame and has all the belts, which I don’t knock him for that, but there’s a way to carry yourself.”
Alvarez may be cocky, but it’s hard to argue those feelings aren’t earned after a decorated career that has seen him dominate division after division while becoming the biggest star in the sport.
A bit of the shine has faded from Alvarez’s star in recent years with many feeling he has avoided the best available opponents in the division. Most wanted to see Alvarez fight David Benavidez, the undefeated two-time former super middleweight champion who never lost his belt in the ring. Behind Benavidez, a fight with longtime mandatory challenger David Morrell was appealing for many.
After years of not getting their due shot at Alvarez, both Benavidez and Morrell moved up in weight to seek new opportunities. Alvarez has maintained he has no interest in being forced into fights he doesn’t want, while also stressing that the Berlanga fight is a valid next chapter in his career.
“I think it’s a good fight because, you know, Mexico vs Puerto Rico, there’s history there,” Alvarez said in his own ‘Off the Cuff.’ “[Critics] always say something, they’re always critical of me. I fought everybody and no matter what, they say something. So I don’t really care.
“… [Berlanga is] strong. He’s strong and he’s fast, especially in the beginning of the fight. He’s big for the weight class, but that’s nothing new for me. He just knows how to go forward and throw punches and that’s why I think he’s going to be a good fight.”
Despite stepping in for the biggest challenge of his career, Berlanga believes his power — which led to an incredible run of 16 consecutive first-round knockouts to start his professional campaign — will be more than Alvarez can handle.
“I truly believe he ain’t ever been hit by [a guy like] me before,” Berlanga said. “Like a person like me? When I hit somebody bro, I make people think about boxing.”
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