‘Not Exchange Punches’: Dmitry Bivol Reveals the Ultimate Game Plan for Terence Crawford to Beat Canelo Alvarez

How does Terence Crawford beat Canelo Alvarez? Can he just go in there and knock him out? Dmitry Bivol doesn’t think so. Bivol, who not only fought but also defeated Canelo back in 2022, knows firsthand what it takes to beat the Mexican superstar. With Crawford set to move up in weight for what could be the biggest fight of his career, Bivol has some advice on how he should approach it.

The upcoming bout between Canelo and Crawford has sparked considerable discussion, particularly regarding the weight disparity between the two fighters. Canelo, a seasoned competitor in the super middleweight division, typically fights at 168 pounds. In contrast, Crawford has recently moved up to the super welterweight class, competing at 154 pounds. This 14-pound difference has led critics to question the fairness and competitiveness of the matchup.

However, Bivol believes that weight isn’t the sole determinant of success in this fight. Speaking to talkSPORT about Crawford’s challenge, Bivol advised, “He needs to do his job what he is doing well. He needs to change his stance, he’s moving a lot, he is keeping distance, like this, he could win of course. (But) not with exchanging punches.”

 

However, Bivol also admitted that Alvarez had more avenues to secure a win than Crawford does. The 34-year-old stated that Alvarez could knock Crawford out since he is the stronger of the two.

Bivol pointed out that Alvarez was a lot more natural at the weight the fight was taking place so he would be more comfortable in the ring as opposed to Crawford

Bivol remains concerned for Crawford

Back in May 2022, Bivol defended his WBA (Super) light heavyweight title against Canelo, who was attempting to move up in weight and add yet another championship to his resume. But Bivol proved to be too big, too sharp, and too technical, controlling the fight from the early rounds and handing Canelo his second professional loss (the first since Floyd Mayweather Jr. in 2013).

This is why he questions whether Crawford can handle the move up in weight. “He’s big, but I don’t know if he can make the weight jump… You need to get used to working with bigger guys”, Bivol added, sounding skeptical.

Despite these concerns, Crawford appears unfazed by the weight gap. A couple of weeks ago, Crawford took to Instagram to share a story of his workout and surprised his fans by getting on a weighing machine to reveal that he was walking around at 186 lbs!

The fight is scheduled to be in September. So getting up in weight with 6 months to go should give him enough time to get used to the extra muscle he will be carrying around and the natural loss of speed that comes with it.