Canelo Next Fight: Who Will Alvarez Fight in 2026?

Canelo next fight: Boxing legend expected to return to the ring on September 12, 2026, in Saudi Arabia.

Key Takeaways:

• Canelo targets September 2026 comeback in Saudi Arabia.
• It’s still unknown who Canelo will fight next (but we have a few guesses!).
• Age, surgery, and unfinished business collide as Canelo plots his return.

Saul ‘Canelo’ Alvarez will celebrate the 2026 Mexican Independence Day in Saudi Arabia. The story goes that he’s expected to headline an event called Mexico Against the World, scheduled for September 12 in Riyadh.

This is going to be a chance for the Mexican star to bounce back after losing his super middleweight titles to Terence “Budd” Crawford in 2025.

Mexico Against the World – Canelo’s Return to the Ring

Canelo Alvarez is expected to headline a Riyadh card branded “Mexico Against the World”. That’s according to Turki Alalshikh, who spoke about this in a video he shared on X.

In the clip, Alalshikh stands beside Canelo, with the Mexican superstar nodding along in clear agreement.

And Alalshikh’s words carry weight for a reason. In 2026, he sits at the very centre of boxing’s power structure, organising a number of high-profile boxing tournaments around the planet.

No surprise there as he’s the chairman of Saudi Arabia’s General Entertainment Authority and co-owner of Zuffa Boxing (alongside UFC boss Dana White).

On top of that, Alalshikh also owns The Ring magazine, a publication that’s been awarding boxing belts to champions across different categories for more than 100 years.

Canelo, too, wore The Ring’s belts on several occasions. This includes the Ring super middleweight title, which he held from 2020 to 2025, when he lost it following his defeat to Terence Crawford.

But, based on what Alalshikh said, he might get a chance to reclaim the belt in September. He indicated that the main event of Mexico Against the World is supposed to be a world title fight.

The title is vacant following Crawford’s retirement, so we might see Canelo fighting someone for it. The big question is who will it be?

Who Will Canelo Alvarez’s Next Fight Be Against?

Canelo, now 35, last entered the ring on September 13, 2025, where he lost a clear decision to Terence “Bud” Crawford. The loss meant that the super middleweight belts (The Ring, WBA Super, WBC, IBF, and WBO) switched hands.

They didn’t stay in Bud’s possession for too long, though. He retired from professional boxing in December, leaving the titles vacant.

The only exception is the WBA title, where Armando Resendiz has since been elevated from interim to full champion. Further, Hamzah Sheeraz is expected to go toe-to-toe with Alem Begic in May for the WBO title.

What all this means is that it’s very likely Canelo will get a chance to reclaim at least some of his old titles.

According to Alalshikh, his planned September 2026 comeback will be a “big, big, big fight” and, crucially, a world title bout.

In other words, this isn’t going to be a soft reset for Canelo. Instead, it’s a direct route back to gold.

But we don’t yet know for certain who’ll be the obstacle in his road to reclaiming his titles. There are, however, some names that keep popping up in the conversation about Canelo’s next fight.   

Most Likely Candidates to Fight Canelo Alvarez in September

It’s not an overstatement to say that everyone would love to box against Canelo, especially if championship belts are at stake. But Canelo doesn’t want to fight just anyone.

He likely wants his next fight to be against an elite opponent, someone who actually deserves to step in the ring with him.

That said, the options are really quite limited. Some of the likely candidates include:

Jose Armando Resendiz

Nicknamed “Toro” (a.k.a. bull), this guy’s currently in possession of the WBA super middleweight title. If Canelo agrees to fight him, we could see all the other organizations putting their titles on the table.

In simple words, he’d get a chance to reclaim all the belts he lost by losing to Crawford. Beating this guy in September would make him the undisputed super middleweight king (again). 

Christian Mbilli

At the 2025 The Ring Awards, Alalshikh brought Canelo and Mbilli together in front of the cameras, wrapped an arm around both men… and then deliberately stepped aside. Many boxing pundits understood this as a sign that a match is in the making.

Hamzah Sheeraz

The unbeaten Brit made his super-middleweight statement in 2025 with a brutal fifth-round stoppage of Edgar Berlanga. But to fight Canelo, he needs to beat Alem Begic first (his rival for the vacant WBO title).

Dmitry Bivol

The Russian remains arguably the biggest unresolved chapter of Canelo’s career. Their May 2022 bout ended in a clear unanimous decision loss for Alvarez, a result that still hangs over his legacy.

After reportedly declining a Beterbiev trilogy in Russia, the signs are now pointing to Bivol hoping for another clash with Canelo.

William Scull

At one point, it seemed that this guy was the next big thing in the super-middleweight division, but then came the fight with Canelo Alvarez in 2025. Scull entered the ring as the IBF champ with a 23-0 record, but the Mexican superstar outboxed him.

Obviously, Canelo has the blueprint for defeating this guy, so winning again shouldn’t be much of a problem. The only real issue is that Scull might exactly be the profile Turki Alalshikh is aiming for.

He wants Canelo’s comeback bout to be a spectacle with millions of PPV buys, like the one against Terence Crawford last year.  

Terence Crawford

Then, there’s Terence Crawford. Sure, he retired last year, but we could see him reconsidering that decision. After all, Canelo did the same.

The downside is that unretiring would risk his undefeated record (42-0). The upside is that his bank account would get much bigger.

Their match in September 2025 attracted 41.1 million viewers globally, making it the most-watched championship bout of the century. As per some reports, Bud earned close to $50 million that night.

Predictions for Canelo’s Comeback Fight

Álvarez is, without question, one of the best fighters boxing has produced. One loss doesn’t redefine a career built over two decades, especially when it came in a genuine war at the elite level.

If there’s one constant with Canelo, it’s this: when the fight gets hard, he doesn’t step back, he leans in.

We’re 100% certain that’s going to be the case with his next fight, regardless of the opponent.

Canelo’s Boxing Stats

The evidence of his fighting spirit is that he’s never been knocked out or lost by TKO. He’s 63-3-2 overall. His three losses were against Terrance Crawford, Dmitry Bivol, and Floyd Mayweather Jr.

His wins? There were some incredible ones. In fact, it’s hard to pick the best one from so many, but it’s the Gennady Golovkin trilogy that made him a true boxing superstar. After a draw in their first meeting, Alvarez went on to win the next two.

Those two wins over GGG were by decision (majority and unanimous), the same as another 22 of his wins. He also has 31 stoppage wins in his portfolio.

Of those 31 wins, 17 were by knockout and 14 by technical knockout. The last time he turned the light off for someone was in 2019 when he KO’d Sergey Kovalev.

This doesn’t mean he’s got no power in his fists anymore. It just means that his boxing style is tactical rather than reckless.

The Mexican is famous for dodging strikes with acrobatic movements. He’s also known for his ability to produce a huge volume of body shots, which often force his opponents to call it quits.   

It didn’t work against Terence Crawford, though. In that fight, he landed just 99 punches out of 338 attempted. No surprise he ended up losing.

What’s the reason behind it? For some, it’s Crawford’s brilliance. For others (mainly Canelo fans), it’s because of the elbow injury that bothered him at the time. But the good news is that it’s all in the past now.

How Serious Was His Surgery?

Losing his undisputed super-middleweight crown wasn’t the end of the bad news. Alvarez was then forced to undergo arthroscopic surgery on his left elbow, a necessary clean-up to remove loose bodies in the joint.

It’s the third serious operation of his career, following work on his knee and wrist, and it underlines where he is physically at this stage.

On the bright side, the surgery went well, and the recovery phase is well underway. The timeline points toward a mid-to-late-2026 comeback, which is in line with what Alalshikh’s been saying.

Will Canelo’s Age be a Problem?

Alvarez turns 36 in July and has been a professional fighter since he was 15. What this means is that time is no longer an abstract factor for him.

The man who beat him last September, Bud Crawford, cited his advancing age as the reason to retire. And he was 38 when he did it.

Mid-to-late thirties might be too old in Crawford’s eyes, but there are plenty of other boxers who’d beg to differ.

The best example is Bernard Hopkins, who became the light heavyweight champion at 49 years and 94 days.

In the super middleweight division, the oldest-ever champion is Thulani Malinga, who was 42 years and 8 days when he won the belt.

Where to Bet on Canelo Alvarez's Next Fight?

The short answer is: right here at Gamdom!

We pride ourselves on doing a great job with boxing betting, releasing odds for dozens of bouts every month.

In most cases, it’s the winner (without a draw) market that we cover, but for major bouts, we go with much bigger coverage.

That said, for Canelo’s next fight, you can expect to come across many additional markets, including 1x2 (with draw as an option), total rounds over/under, will the fight go the distance, winning method, and so on.

There will also be some combo bets like Winner & Exact Rounds (e.g., Alvarez to win & 12 Rounds).

The best thing is that we tend to deliver boxing odds quickly. That said, you have every right to expect Canelo’s odds to pop up on our site as soon as his next fight is confirmed.

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