CANELO ALVAREZ proved he's still a force to be reckoned with thanks to a dominant victory over Jermell Charlo.
The pride of Mexico defended his undisputed super middleweight throne against his 160lbs counterpart in front of a sold-out T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas early on Sunday morning.
The tall, rangy and explosive Charlo was, on paper, expected to give the face of boxing some trouble.
That trouble, however, didn't materialise as Canelo asserted his dominance from the first to the final bell on his way to earning a lopsided points decision.
There were no shenanigans from the judges, who scored scoring the contest 119-108, 118-109 and 118-109 in favour of the Guadalajara gladiator.
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A fired-up Canelo, 33, roared: "I'm the best. Who's better? Nobody can beat this Canelo."
He added: "I’m a strong fighter all the time. I’m a strong man."
Challenger Charlo was floored for only the second time in his career in the seventh round after eating a beautiful uppercut moments after a big overhand right.
Canelo said of the knockdown: "I worked all the fight to go in the body.
"Then I changed the punch and that's what happened. We worked for that.
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"We know he's a great fighter.
"He knows how to move in the ring and we worked that in the gym for three months.
"Three months in the mountains without my family, without everything.
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"But I still love boxing. Boxing made me the person I am today. Boxing is my life."
Former undisputed light-middleweight champion Charlo - who was stripped of his WBO crown as soon as the first bell rang - cut a dejected figure after coming up short in the biggest fight of his career.
He said: "I just feel like I wasn't me in there. It's boxing.
"Sometimes you win and sometimes you lose."
Disappointment with his performance aside, Charlo is proud of going the distance with the sport's former pound-for-pound king.
"I'm proud of myself," a crestfallen Charlo said. "He didn't knock me out. He hit me with some hard shots."
