Bloody Elbow is the place to be for fight week coverage of this three-belt middleweight unification clash between Canelo Alvarez vs. Daniel Jacobs, set for May 4th in Las Vegas, Nevada.
Boxing’s biggest and most lucrative fight of 2019 is nearly upon us. On Saturday, May 4th at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada, WBC and WBA middleweight champion Canelo Alvarez (51-1-2, 35 KOs) takes on the inspirational IBF champion Daniel Jacobs (35-2, 29 KOs) in a three-belt unification. This is the best taking on the best, and it’s being streamed on DAZN instead of having to pony up $75-85 on PPV.
Alvarez is one of boxing’s biggest stars, and after engaging in another thriller with Gennady Golovkin last September, he was able to get the majority decision and both of GGG’s belts in the process. That was the last fight of Canelo’s HBO contract, and he signed with DAZN shortly thereafter on a $350 million mega-deal. He had a one-off at super-middleweight against Rocky Fielding last December, easily stopping Fielding in three rounds. Now he’s returning to 160 lbs to defend his belt against Jacobs, with the hope of becoming one belt short of undisputed champion status. The other titlist is WBO champ Demetrius Andrade (27-0, 17 KOs), who’s also with DAZN, and of course “GGG” is also a DAZN fighter and hoping for a trilogy with the Mexican sensation.
Jacobs is an incredible story that makes his championship run that much more remarkable. In 2011 he was diagnosed with osteosarcoma, a life-threatening form of bone cancer, but he survived and was able to recover to the point of restarting his career. Jacobs racked up the victories and fought his way to the elite of 160 lbs, earning a title shot vs. Gennady Golovkin in March of 2017. It was a close fight that saw Jacobs come up short on the scorecards, but he fought well and gave GGG a difficult contest. He’s since beaten Luis Arias, Maciej Sulecki, and most recently won an action-packed battle with Sergiy Derevyanchenko to win the IBF title. Jacobs called out Canelo as his next opponent, and in a rare moment for boxing, he asked and he shall receive.
Alvarez is the favorite as you may expect, but do not discount Jacobs’ chances. He’ll have a height and reach advantage against Canelo, and he cuts more weight to make 160 than his opponent does. Add in that Jacobs is also a very skilled boxer with power, and this is by no means a walk in the park for Alvarez. Of course, we can’t ignore the historically favorable scorecards Canelo has managed over the years, even in clear wins where he was given wider scores than most observers saw fit, but at least Adelaide Byrd won’t be a part of this main event.
Canelo vs. Jacobs main card action starts at 9 PM ET/6 PM PT (with prelims at 7:30 PM ET/4:30 PM PT), so theoretically the main event should be well after Donald Cerrone and Al Iaquinta fight. Bloody Elbow will have coverage throughout the week, including play-by-play, analysis, and highlights.