WBC approve Canelo vs Makabu at Cruiserweight!

Earlier today the World Boxing Council announced that they had given the go ahead for a potential fight between Saul 'Canelo' Alvarez and Ilunga Makabu.

With Canelo just coming off the back of a spectacular KO of Caleb Plant, the choices of his next opponent widened, with calls being made for him to move up to Light-Heavyweight and conquer yet another division.

But it seems like the Mexican is wanting an even bigger challenge, seemingly willing to fight at 200lbs against a serious fighter in Makabu. The heaviest he has weighed at in his career was 175lb against Sergey Kovalev, that fight looked like it could cause him problems on paper, however he seemingly despatched the Russian with a devastating KO in round 11.

If this fight eventually gets made, many questions will be asked about Canelo, will his power translate to Cruiserweight? Will his cardio still be impeccable? What about the reflexes and speed? Will they be up to scratch or will he slow down due to the weight? All of these questions seem to be on the lips of many fans.

With Canelo, we can never write him off, he is the best pound-for-pound boxer on the planet, he has been for years now. Whether it's his power, his fight IQ, his speed, his footwork or his cardio, the man has it all in abundance and that is why he has been successful up and down the divisions, dismantling them all one by one.

It would not surprise me if he did the same to Makabu, don't get me wrong, Ilunga is no bum and he is certainly a good fighter but the 'Canelo factor' leads me to believe that he really could conquer Cruiserweight.

At the same time, it's only right to be realistic and acknowledge what's actually ahead of him, a bigger more seasoned champion at a much heavier weight (25lbs heavier than what he fought at in 2019) is more than capable of causing Canelo serious issues. Will it be a step too far? I'm not too sure at this moment in time, it's difficult to predict as of now but if the fight gets made, expect some follow up analysis.

Currently though, I think we can at least give props to Canelo for having the intention of taking this fight. In a sport where a lot more fighters only prioritise money and not pursuing the 'best fights' possible, Canelo is a prime example of someone who fights consistently, competes with top competition and puts himself in situations most wouldn't.

Let's not forget how much money he makes from all of that too. In retrospect, maybe having a similar attitude towards boxing will get you even more money?