00:00as far as the business of boxing. The best thing is a fight that needs to take almost everything.
00:05He paid all that money and had the biggest stage in boxing on Netflix and that is really the best
00:11they could do. He knew that he could not beat Blood Crawford which is why they basically paid
00:16him 100 million dollars. One Canelo Alvarez shocked fans when he admitted he didn't give
00:22his best against Terrence Crawford. On Joe Rogan's podcast he confessed that he fought at half speed,
00:28stayed flat-footed, and made Crawford look stronger than he really was. Even more surprising,
00:33Canelo revealed that money and business interests influenced the fight. He openly admitted that he
00:39was paid to hold back and not compete with the intensity his fans have always expected.
00:58His words confirmed what many in boxing circles suspected after the fight. Viewers noticed
01:04something strange. Canelo wasn't himself. His jab, normally one of his sharpest weapons,
01:09was barely used. He threw mostly single punches, avoided combinations, and applied no real pressure.
01:15Round after round he stood still and looked flat. The punch stats told the same story. His totals were
01:21some of the lowest of his career. At first people thought it was just age or decline, but after his
01:27confession, the story completely changed. He don't have the punching power, but he has the skills that's necessary.
01:35Crawford. Yeah. So you were very impressed with his performance?
01:39You know, the point of the matter is, you know, I knew if it came down to, if somebody got knocked out, I know.
01:49Crawford would probably get knocked out, but I know about Fox.
01:53Oscar De La Hoya was one of the first to call it out. Just hours after the fight, he posted online.
01:59What was that? I know Canelo was slow, but not that slow. I know he was weak, but not that weak.
02:04Did he even train or was he paid to lose? For De La Hoya, who had promoted Canelo for years,
02:09the performance was unrecognizable. He had seen Alvarez sharp, aggressive, and dangerous in training
02:15camps. But against Crawford, it looked like a completely different fighter. The drop-off was
02:19so extreme that Oscar refused to believe it was only age or wear and tear. Veteran fighter Gabe
02:25Rosado also raised concerns. He described Canelo as flat-footed, without a jab, no combinations,
02:31and throwing one punch at a time. When he got hit by Crawford and he took that deep breath,
02:38it's frustrating. Don't get me wrong. Canelo facing the right opponent that's going to stay in front of
02:45him, that's going to fight, that's going to make it a brawl, Canelo knocks him out. So I'm not saying
02:51Canelo's shot or done. No, it's far from it. To Rosado, it looked like the work of a man well past his
02:57prime, not an active champion with belts. His breakdown lined up with what Canelo later admitted
03:03himself. Rosado reminded fans that against Gennady Golovkin, Alvarez used his jab in doubles,
03:10countered with speed, and kept constant pressure. Against Crawford, all of that disappeared.
03:15Claressa Shields added another view, saying Canelo's body was breaking down after years of punishment.
03:21She believed his legs were gone, he couldn't throw combinations, and his mobility had faded.
03:25David Benavidez, one of Canelo's loudest rivals, was less sympathetic. He argued this proved what
03:31he had always said, Canelo takes safe fights and avoids risk. For Benavidez, the Crawford bout showed
03:37Alvarez was chasing money, not legacy. According to him, this was expected. Meanwhile, Oscar de la
03:43Hoya told Fight Hype that Canelo's performance was more about styles than decline. He insisted Alvarez
03:49could still beat the right opponents. Give him someone who stays in front of him and makes it a brawl,
03:54and Canelo knocks him out, Oscar said. He's not finished. It's about squeezing the last dollars
04:00from the fans. Watching Bud catch those shots off his glove. He looked amazing. So amazing. He looked
04:08good. He'd go to a body and he'd catch that and come up with an uppercut. You know, just all those
04:12things that seemed... He looked great. Yeah, I've never seen anybody do that to ever. No one has.
04:17Yeah, he's the best. Canelo. Yeah, he's the best. And I think he would do that to Canelo on his best day.
04:21Canelo said it. He goes, I couldn't figure him out. No. Which is...
04:25De la Hoya believes Canelo still has big wins left, but Eddie Hearn offered a different angle.
04:31In an interview with Sports Illustrated, Hearn pointed to the massive value of a rematch with
04:36Crawford. He argued that the real question is whether Alvarez can adjust. Canelo could shock
04:41everyone if he changes his style, Hearn said, praising his past ability to reinvent himself.
04:46In Hearn's view, a second fight could look very different. In their first meeting,
04:50Alvarez actually started well. Early rounds saw him control the action with sharp counters,
04:55forcing Crawford to stay cautious. But from rounds 9 to 12, everything flipped. Crawford
04:59landed the cleaner shots, pushed Alvarez backward, and swung the momentum. Most observers agreed those
05:05late rounds sealed the win. Hearn believes if Canelo adjusts his approach to those championship rounds,
05:10a rematch could unfold in a completely new way. Chris Eubank Jr. supported that idea,
05:15calling a rematch massive and saying Alvarez still has the tools to change the story.
05:20Trainer Robert Garcia agreed but said hunger would decide it.
05:23If Canelo comes back with true hunger, he can beat Crawford, Garcia told Fight Hype.
05:28He explained that Alvarez's mistake was easing off late instead of pressing with power until the very end.
05:35Across the sport, one message echoed. Canelo still has the skills but his willingness to use
05:39them fully will shape his future. For Terrence Crawford, the win over Alvarez,
05:44whether Canelo was holding back or not, opened up huge opportunities.
05:48The big question now is, who does he face next? Some experts think he will avoid the most dangerous
05:53names like David Benavides, Dmitry Bivol, Diego Pacheco, or Bectomir Melikusev. These fighters
06:01bring size, power, and youth that could trouble Crawford's slick style. Instead, many believe he'll
06:06target marketable opponents like Jermal Charlo or Hamza Shiraz. Less risk, but big paydays. This is the
06:13business of boxing. Crawford's victory lets him demand massive purses, but careful matchmaking
06:19will decide how long he can keep this advantage. Alvarez's choices matter too. If he pushes for an
06:24immediate rematch with Crawford, it would attract worldwide attention. If not, and he picks a safer
06:29opponent, it might signal the final chapter of his career. Critics argue Canelo's fight against
06:34Crawford was just another example of boxing chasing money over legacy. Fans wanted competition,
06:39but promoters wanted revenue. Even if a fighter is past his peak, if the numbers are high, the fight
06:45gets made. That's exactly what happened here. The payday was huge, but the physical cost for Canelo
06:50may have been even bigger. Coach Ronnie Shields was direct after the fight. He thinks Canelo should
06:55retire. Put him for his boxing business? Because, you know, the fighters always get the less money. And some
07:03of the fighters, they need to, they need to, they need to take the money, the guaranteed money, right?
07:08Because they don't, they don't make a lot of money in the fights, right? But they are, they are, they are,
07:18they are. Speaking to Fight Hub TV, he said, it's over. Shields didn't see the old energy, sharpness or aggression
07:26that made Canelo dangerous. For him, no trainer switch can fix this. You can fire Eddie Reynoso and hire
07:31someone else, it won't matter. His body isn't responding anymore. And when that happens, nothing can reverse
07:37it. Oscar De La Hoya disagreed, suggesting Canelo could extend his career with changes in his corner. He even floated the
07:44idea of hiring Ronnie Shields as a trainer. But Shields dismissed it. He explained that the problem isn't
07:49coaching, it's wear and tear. Canelo has been fighting at the highest level since his teenage years.
07:54That's decades of wars and heavy punishment. By contrast, Crawford has fewer fights, fresher legs,
08:00and less damage. Shields warned that Alvarez's body is telling him to stop and ignoring it will only make
08:05things worse. Since losing to Dimitri Bivol in May 2022, Alvarez hasn't looked the same. He still won
08:11fights but without the same dominance. No knockouts, fading in late rounds, and beating opponents he
08:17could handle even while slowing down. Against Crawford, size wasn't enough, and when the fight
08:21went deep, conditioning betrayed him. Shields summed it up clearly. The body always tells the truth and
08:27this time it did. Shields also surprised fans with advice for Crawford. He suggested that even Terrence
08:33Bud Crawford should think about retiring soon, maybe after one more fight. At 38, Shields argued,
08:39it's smarter to leave before decline sets in. He even advised Crawford to drop to 160, grab a belt
08:45there, and then walk away. Staying at 168, he warned, is dangerous with hungry young contenders
08:51like Christian and Billy, who would pressure non-stop and never give Crawford the space Canelo gave him.
08:57But logic rarely wins when big money is on the table. Crawford is now undisputed at 168 and one of
09:03boxing's top stars. That's why Turki Alalsic quickly mentioned David Benavidez as a possible fight.
09:09It's the matchup fans would pay huge money to see. Crawford admitted he's still deciding.
09:14In an interview with Ring Magazine, he said he'll sit with his team to choose between dropping to
09:18middleweight or staying at super middleweight. But middleweight champions like Janabek Alam
09:22Canuli, Arislandi Lara, and Carlos Adames don't bring big pay-per-view numbers. Financially,
09:28that move doesn't make sense. Fans online are already creating fantasy matchups. Some say Crawford
09:33should go for history, win a belt at 160, then move up to light heavyweight and challenge
09:38Dimitri Bivol or Artur Beterbiev. If he pulled it off, he'd become just the second man to hold
09:43titles in seven weight classes. Something even Mayweather never did. Others argue he should
09:49skip all that and fight Benavidez now. One thing is certain, money drives everything.
09:54Canelo's loss to Crawford showed fighters will risk their careers for the biggest payday.
09:58What happens next will define both men's legacies.
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