Hall of Famer, two-weight world champion and Golden Boy promotion’s partner, Bernard Hopkins has confirmed that he is picking Jermell Charlo to cause an upset on September 30 and dethrone Saul ‘Canelo’ Alvarez of his undisputed super-middleweight titles in Las Vegas, Nevada.
The event titled ‘Undisputed vs Undisputed’ will see Canelo [59-2-2, 39KO’s] box under the Premier Boxing Champions promotional banner in the first instalment of a three-fight agreement against the current undisputed super-welterweight champion Charlo [35-1-1, 19KO’s]. The move from Canelo follows his separation from his previous promoter, Matchroom Boxing, in June.
Charlo will be moving up two weight classes to challenge Canelo on September 30 and finds himself as the betting underdog with the Vegas odd maker, which is understandable considering the 14lb jump in weight. In contrast, Canelo has campaigned at 168lbs since December 2018.
However, despite Charlo being the underdog, Hopkins is backing the undisputed world super-welterweight champion to upset the odds and claim victory.
Speaking to FightHub TV, Hopkins gives Charlo an ‘85%’ chance, in his opinion, to defeat Canelo in Vegas.
“He [Charlo] has a legitimate chance. He has an 85% plus chance of beating Canelo. Why? Because, to my understanding, he’s not going in there to prove something which would fall into Canelo’s hands.”
“But he’s [Charlo] going to go in there and let him know, establish in the first round. That he belongs, he’s tough, and he’s going to show him that his time has come and gone.”
“Canelo has to be shown that he has slowed up. He ain’t gonna surrender and think, “I’ve slowed up so I’ll act like it. He has to be shown, and that has to be early.”
Hopkins, De La Hoya and Golden Boy Promotions as a whole have had a bitter relationship with each other following Canelo’s split from the promotional entity in 2020, which was ultimately settled out of court before legal proceedings formally commenced.
Meanwhile, De La Hoya is backing Canelo to retain his undisputed crown when speaking to the same outlet, FightHub TV. De La Hoya believes that the weight factor will play a prominent role in the contest and will eventually see Canelo force stoppage in the later rounds.
“I think Charlo is going to have a great fight, I think Charlo is going to have a great performance, but I just think the weight [will prove too much of a factor],” De La Hoya continued.
“Jumping up two weight classes ... it’s a lot. When you’re facing Canelo and he keeps on pressuring you, I think he [Canelo] might even stop him in the later rounds.”
