Often referred to as “Canelo,” Spanish for cinnamon and a reference to his red hair, Saúl Álvarez is hard to ignore. Broad shoulders, a sturdy chin and elite conditioning allow Álvarez to close in and exchange with opponents, typically stunning them with a series of his signature combination blows.

The 2005 Junior Mexican National Boxing champion turned pro at 15 years old after a brief amateur career. Trained by father-son duo, Eddy and Chepo Reynoso, Canelo went undefeated—recording 36 wins in six years—leading up to his HBO debut in March 2011.

In that fight, the 20-year-old Álvarez won his first world title—making him the youngest fighter to ever hoist the 154-pound belt—when he defeated Matthew Hatton at California’s Honda Center. Canelo rounded out 2011 with a unanimous decision victory over Ryan Rhodes in June and TKO win against Kermit Cintron in November to preserve his undefeated record.

Successful title defenses gave way to a May 2012 HBO PPV bout with Shane Mosley at the MGM Grand. The unanimous decision win over Mosley earned Canelo dates with Austin Trout, Floyd Mayweather, Alfredo Angulo and Erislandy Lara in 2013-2014, going 3-1 in that span.

In his return to HBO in March 2015, Álvarez knocked out James Kirkland in three rounds—landing over 60% of his power punches—at Houston’s Minute Maid Park. He ended 2015 with a HBO PPV victory against middleweight titleholder, Miguel Cotto, in November at Mandalay Bay.

Notable Fights

Shane Mosley – W UD 12

Austin Trout – W UD 12

Floyd Mayweather – L MD 12

James Kirkland – W TKO 3

Miguel Cotto – W UD 12