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By Sean Jones: Bernard Hopkins is not giving Errol spence jr many possibilities against Canelo Alvarez placeholder image if this fight takes place soon. Hopkins says Canelo’s skills, not his size, will be too much for Spence (27-0, 21 KOs).
IBF / WBC welterweight champion Spence would move up two weight classes to face Canelo (54-1-2, 36 KOs) at 160, and would have plenty of size and power to face the Mexican star.
In Hopkins’ mind, Spence would have to be the puncher for him to gain Canelo’s respect because if he doesn’t do that, he’ll be knocked down. We saw Canelo do just that in his win over the former WBA super middleweight champion. Callum smith on December 19.
Canelo pressured the slim-legged Smith all night, hitting him against the ropes to win a unanimous decision in 12 rounds. Most boxing fans would agree that Smith lacked the ring IQ to share the ring with Alvarez.
However, the 2012 American Olympian Spence is different as he has boxing skills and a ring IQ that is second to none. Canelo will find it much harder to beat Spence than anyone he has faced since Floyd Mayweather Jr.
Spence needs to earn Canelo’s respect
“I’ve seen Spence a couple of times, and he doesn’t look like bones; you’ve been around Spence, right? Hopkins told Fighthub. “He is not a huge guy. Okay, 54, right? 60, right? Then he will fight Canelo at age 60, middleweight.
“So he had to go up and Canelo will go down. I like Canelo in that fight because Errol Spence can fight, but he will have to be the puncher to get respect.
“The size of Canelo, have you ever seen his legs, his calves? Yo, he’s a spark plug. We call on people who are built like him and fight like him. There is a difference that is being built somewhere and you are fighting where you are not supposed to fight.
“He fights like a spark plug, and then he puts those other things on you and confuses you because he’s not fighting like that all the time.
“The legs, the thighs and how he puts his punches like a twisting position when he lets go of the power, as we’ve seen recently with that right uppercut he threw a couple of weeks ago.
“I don’t think Spence wants that kind of power. And I don’t think he understands at that level yet. I don’t believe it until I see it. You could be wrong and you could be misjudging. Until it is announced. Let me put it this way; I didn’t get to see it.
“If the contracts are announced and signed, then I believe it. It even has to be the night of, then I’ll believe it, ”Hopkins said of the Spence-Canelo fight.
What makes Spence different from the other guys Canelo has fought during his career is that he is a vicious body puncher who will target the Mexican star’s midsection.
Everyone Canelo has fought during his career has been a scout and has learned to avoid those shots. What Canelo hasn’t learned is how to get out of the way of body shots. That’s where Spence could take advantage of Canelo’s troubles to get down the stairs.
Canelo will not turn down Spence’s fight
“Right now, I think a lot of people are going to put names on who they want to fight just to be in the conversation,” Hopkins said.
“Until I see it written and advertised, press conferences are happening, get your tickets, get your seats, everyone is excited, so I’m fine, fine. They are just conversations right now.
“I have to see it. If Spence is really serious about it, then if he’s as inflexible as he was in fights and he will make it happen.
“I don’t think Canelo is going to reject that. I think it will be something you will gladly accept.
“If I was with Spence, I’d say, ‘Errol, you have guys you can beat,” Hopkins continued. “If Canelo stays until 55 or 60, then you have it. But not near its peak.
“I understand it’s a good promotion, a good conversation, but after a while, if we go into next year and you’re talking about Spence and Canelo, I’m going to be like, ‘Hey, it’s just conversation.
“It’s like dream matches on EA Sports. You are doing all these things. Are you on Playstation? On Playstation, you can match anyone, ”Hopkins said.
Canelo is opportunistic and of course he will fight Spence, and you can bet he will try to squeeze that fight next year. Canelo is likely to make more money than his fights with Gennadiy Golovkin, Billy Joe Saunders and Caleb Plant.
Spence’s ability to sell stadiums in Texas means we could see him and Canelo fill all 80,000 seats at AT&T Stadium. Canelo is also popular in Texas so they are likely to clash.
Errol won’t be able to keep Canelo away
“He can’t keep him away from him,” Hopkins said about Spence not being able to get Canelo away from him. “Nah, skill,” Hopkins said when asked if Spence couldn’t keep Canelo away from him because of his weight.
“Yeah, I don’t mind fighting a big guy if he doesn’t have skills. It would tire him out and hit him.
“But if he has skills and he’s been walking, he’s comfortable and he’s been in that position and he understands that position. And going straight into that, it must be something I’m missing.
“I respect Spence and all the other fighters, but I’m telling you that Canelo is at a different level of IQ and how he wants to represent himself coming out.
“People are going to be surprised that he is not with us and that I am talking like that. I’m just being real You said ‘keep it real’ and I keep it real. Sometimes reality hurts, ”Hopkins said.
I’m afraid I have to disagree with Hopkins that Spence couldn’t keep Canelo away from him. On the contrary, it will be Canelo who will not be able to keep Spence away from him, considering that he will focus on his body.
We got to see Spence go after Canelo’s midsection the same way he did Shawn Porter and Chris Algieri. It can be argued that Canelo’s ability to land body shots is no better than those two fighters, and Spence exhausted them both.
Canelo was injured by the body shots of Mayweather Jr and Austin Trout, and neither of those guys is even close to the type of fighter Spence is when it comes to attacking the body. Mayweather hurt Canelo with a punch to the body that made him look ready to be knocked off the ropes.
Who can forget what Trout did to Canelo after hurting him in the body. Canelo was so hurt that he spent the entire second half of the contest with his back against the ropes.
Golovkin didn’t throw more than a small handful of body shots in his two fights with Canelo, which is why he didn’t knock him out. If Golovkin focused his punches primarily on Canelo’s body like Spence would, he probably would have stopped Canelo twice.
I choose Spence to stop Canelo if this happens as he will target his midsection and force him to fold in the ninth round. Like I said, Canelo has never fought a body puncher like Spence, and he’s going to break down.
