“Wasn’t Sober”: Will Smith’s Iconic Movie Director Reveals Wild Sparring Session With Canelo Alvarez

It’s not every day you hear about a Hollywood director stepping into the ring with a world champion boxer, but Peter Berg has a story that tops them all. Known for directing hit films like Hancock starring Will Smith and Lone Survivor with Mark Wahlberg, Berg once upon a time found himself trading punches with Canelo Alvarez

But here’s the twist—he wasn’t exactly in peak condition for the session. Not that it would have mattered in the slightest, but the moment just happened to reveal itself during his birthday, and let’s just say, he wasn’t exactly sober when he stepped through the ropes.

But why was Berg feuding with Canelo? What was Canelo doing taking on the director of Hancock, anyway? Was this on a movie set?

Turns out that Berg and Canelo go a long way back!

Berg used to have a boxing gym with actor and comedian, Gary Shandling, back in the day. This was the early 2010s. Unfortunately, it was struggling due to a variety of reasons. That is, until one fine day in 2013, Canelo stumbled upon it.

As Berg was telling himself he couldn’t keep doing this anymore, a red-haired gentleman, as he described him, came over and introduced himself and asked to make it his camp. And the rest, as they say, is history.

Cut to a few years later, Berg landed in LA, not exactly drunk, not exactly sober, and demanded someone spar him. Elaborating on his experience to Joe Rogan, Berg says, “Walked into the gym and Canelo was training and he was in camp. I walked in and announced that it was my birthday and I wanted rounds. I go ‘it’s my birthday and I want some f**king rounds’.”

And Canelo, ever being the gentleman that he is, obliged. Thankfully, he only threw one punch, which is probably why Berg remembers this story.

“I went two rounds with him, he threw one punch at the end of the second round,” Berg recalled. “But it was a jab, and the way it landed, I had never been hit like this. He locked my jaw, and my whole neck cracked.”, he added while looking oddly nostalgic. 

Despite Canelo going incredibly easy on him, Berg quickly realized the difference in levels when stepping into the ring with an elite fighter. “It was a perfect jab and he threw it maybe 20%,” he concluded. 

Unfortunately, Canelo only offers this kind of courtesy to friends. And in 2025, there aren’t a lot of friends who will be standing opposite him with 8 Oz gloves.

2025 has big plans for Canelo

Canelo is heading to Saudi Arabia for his next fight, and it’s a big one.

The boxing superstar will defend his undisputed super middleweight championship against undefeated Cuban fighter William Scull on May 3 in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, as part of a massive four-fight deal with Riyadh Season.

If you’re wondering ‘That’s it? That’s the big news?’, don’t fret. Later in the year, he is expected to face World Boxing Association (WBA) light middleweight and World Boxing Organization (WBO) interim light middleweight champion Terence Crawford on September 13.

This announcement came as a particular shock, especially since Canelo was reportedly in talks to fight Jake Paul in Las Vegas on the same date. But Alvarez made his stance clear. “I just fight real fighters, no f—ing around with Canelo,” he said in a Ring Magazine video.

If he wins both bouts, he’s lined up for two more fights in Riyadh in 2025, with potential opponents like Dmitry Bivol, Hamzah Sheeraz, and Chris Eubank Jr.