If you ask Canelo Alvarez what Saturday's fight against heated rival Julio Cesar Chavez Jr. in their all-Mexico showdown means to his career, boxing's biggest star in the post Floyd Mayweather-Manny Pacquiao era does his best to play it cool.
"[Chavez] is one more of the 50 of all my opponents that I've faced," Alvarez said during a media teleconference. "I've wanted to rip their head off. I wanted to beat them. I wanted to knock them out. This is a little extra. There's a little bit more motivation, of course, because of the rivalry, but it's [just] another one of my fights."
Playing it cool has always been the preferred default for Alvarez (48-1-1, 34 KOs), with his matinee idol looks, calculated boxing style and preference to handle the matchmaking of his career on his own terms (for better or worse). But even Alvarez can't fully hide the extra amount of fire inside of him for this fight.
For all of his success both commercially and critically in boxing, Alvarez, 26, has never quite fit the mold of the traditional Mexican warrior, willing to take two in order to give one, and takes on all comers at any given time. Throughout his career, certain fans have never let him forget it.
While Saturday's fight against Chavez (50-2-1, 32 KOs) in Las Vegas at the T-Mobile Arena (HBO PPV, 9 p.m. ET) offers Alvarez another opportunity to brighten his star by serving as the A-side to a pay-per-view on boxing's most important weekend financially (Cinco de Mayo), there's much more at stake below the surface.
While it has been obvious for years there's no love lost between Alvarez and Chavez, asking both to produce the exact root for their dislike hasn't provided any clear answers. We know that Alvarez certainly isn't a fan of Chavez running his mouth and criticizing him. But there's something a bit more generic and emblematic to their ill feelings.
Despite how poorly he has done in submarining his own career in recent years, Chavez remains Mexican boxing royalty as the son of the most beloved and popular fighter in the country's great history. In many ways, he is a representation of the old guard -- the most hard-core of hard-core boxing fans from Mexico who refuse to give Alvarez his due as anything more than a pretty boy.
So while it's true that Alvarez is competing for the pride of his country and the undisputed title as Mexico's most popular fighter, he's also fighting for the rightful inheritance of respect he has yet to fully receive from his own nation. In a way, it's not dissimilar to the same battle his own promoter, Mexican-American star Oscar De La Hoya, had entering his first fight against Julio Cesar Chavez Sr. in 1996.
"Titles are very important to me but this is above that," Alvarez said. "This goes above a title, any title. It's for honor, for pride, and it's very important for me. And to keep making history in my career."
Alvarez hasn't been perfect, of course, and gave his critics more fuel last May when, after knocking out Amir Khan in Las Vegas, he called unified middleweight champion Gennady Golovkin into the ring to hype a future fight between them. After celebrating his Mexican heritage during a post fight interview that drew cheers from the crowd, Alvarez boldly exclaimed, "We don't f--- around. I fear no one in this sport."
One week later, Alvarez gave up his middleweight title in order to avoid fighting Golovkin. One year later, the two still haven't faced off, although many are hopeful a victory on Saturday is the final step toward a fall showdown that would undoubtedly be the biggest fight the sport could make.
Alvarez can't repair the negative issues associated with his handling of Golovkin until the two actually get into a ring together and square off. But he can win back the critical hearts of many from his home nation with how he handles himself in the ring against Chavez.
Whether you believe we will see the best of the often-troubled Chavez on Saturday doesn't mask the fact that this is a difficult challenge for Alvarez, who deserves credit for moving up just shy of 10 pounds above his previous highest weight for this 164.5-pound catchweight bout.
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Alvarez has never been the definitively smaller man in a big fight, let alone the smaller puncher. Chavez, a former middleweight titleholder who has fought as high as light heavyweight, also has been known to rehydrate upwards of 20 pounds.
What this means is a victory -- particularly one in knockout fashion -- would do wonders to any idea that Alvarez doesn't possess the same level of machismo that has been the default for every great Mexican legend before him.
While securing a large fan base has never been an issue for the ultra popular Alvarez, Saturday's fight offers him an opportunity to win over a fan base that has eluded him. The ones descendent from the great Chavez Sr. who still cheer on his famous offspring, hoping there's still time for him to catch a spark of what the old man was all about.
"[Chavez Jr.] has his fans, but I think a lot of his fans are more his father's fans than his," Alvarez said. "His fans follow his father, what his father says, because [Chavez Jr.] has shown a lot of ups and downs in his career, and he himself has not had a real disciplined career."
If Alvarez is victorious, those same fans just might be cheering for him on Saturday. And bigger than money, titles or fame, that just might be the biggest prize available to Canelo when all is said and done.
