Canelo Alvarez was shocked when, on Saturday 7th May 2022, he was beaten by Russian boxer Dmitry Bivol in their light heavyweight title clash in Las Vegas. Bivol was declared victorious with all three judges voting unanimously in his favour. This leaves him as the reigning WBA light heavyweight champion. Bivol’s undefeated record to is now 20-0.

Alvarez, on the other hand, suffered the second defeat of his entire career – he hadn’t lost a fight in 9 years, when was defeated by Floyd Mayweather Jr. He is ranked as the greatest pound-for-pound fighter in the world and is the current world super-middleweight champion, however he moved up a weight class for his bout with Bivol. But despite his boxing prowess, Alvarez struggled against Bivol, being continuously pummelled and bruised by the Russian. He finished the bout atypically red after Bivol's onslaught, but remained a true sportsman even in defeat.

In 2021, Alvarez became the first ever acknowledged super-middleweight champion with a win via an 11th round technical knockout over then-undefeated IBF titleholder Caleb Plant. He has won titles across four different weight divisions -- light heavyweight, super middleweight, super-welterweight and middleweight.

After the fight, Alvarez said he was eager for a rematch. Bivol, who has held the light heavyweight title since 2016, said he was also keen for a rematch.

"I'm ready for a rematch, I just want to be treated as the champion now."

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