Saul Alvarez vs Callum Smith
20th December 0400hrs
Boxing – USA – Title Fight
Pick Alvarez on points
Bookmaker William Hill
Odds: 13/8 odds taken 02:07 GMT, Friday, 18th December
It’s been a great month for boxing and we have another top clash coming up this weekend as Briton’s Callum Smith faces Saul Alvarez.
This is going to be in the early hours of Sunday morning UK time because the fight is being hosted in San Antonio, Texas.
It is the long-awaited return for Alvarez and he looks to be taking a bit of a risk as he faces up to Smith in what could be the fight of the year.
Table of Contents
Saul Alvarez Preview – Can Canelo survive a tough test?
Saul Alvarez is such a seasoned fighter and is a four-division world champion.
He pretty much ruled the middleweight division and then in November 2019, he made the move to the light heavyweight division.
In that move up the division, he faced Sergey Kovalev at the MGM in Las Vegas and stopped his opponent in the 11th round of that contest.
That moved his career record onto a remarkable W53 L1 record.
Alvarez is the current 1/6 odds-on favourite for the win in this bout* (odds taken 02:07 GMT, Friday, 18th December).
The only defeat that he has suffered in his professional career happened against Floyd Mayweather in their big 2013 clash.
Since that loss, Saul Alverez has posted a W11 D1 record.
You can look around at previews by pundits and most are expecting this to be a tough test for Canelo.
He has the finishing power and against legend Kovalev, Canelo pounded away at his opponent, building up a nice lead on the card before striking.
Everything that Alvarez has done in his career has been so impressive.
That first step into the light heavyweight division was expected to see him go a little slower.
It is no easy thing putting on the extra weight and retaining sharpness immediately.
But he handled himself superbly in a measured performance against Kovalevnand that just suggests that there is more to come.
Alvarez to win by KO TKO or Disqualification is at 10/11 in the boxing betting markets for this one* (odds taken 02:07 GMT, Friday, 18th December).
What is going to be interesting to watch is to what degree does ring rust play a part for both fighters.
This fight is for the WBA and WBC world titles.
Callum Smith Preview – Can Mundo pull off the biggest win of his career?
This will be the first fight for Callum Smith since retaining the WBA super-middleweight title against John Ryder in November last year.
He won that title against George Groves back in September 2018 and has made two successful defences so far.
This is going to be a massive step up in the class of opposition for the Brit though and he is 4/1 underdog in boxing betting* (odds taken 02:07 GMT, Friday, 18th December).
Mundo will be putting his undefeated career record on the line here where he is at 27-0-0.
It’s been a quietly understated career that he has put in the table and he does have some advantages coming into the fight.
He is a vastly experienced super-middleweight performer.
The tale of the tape also gives Smith a sizable advantage in both height and reach over the Mexcian.
He has a brilliant 70% knockout average in his career as well and we think that he does stay the distance.
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Callum Smith can hold his own well enough to warrant backing the 6/5 odds on the fight going the distance* (odds taken 02:07 GMT, Friday, 18th December).
Smith has an 8-inch reach advantage and stands at 6f 3 inches to the 5f 8 inch statue of Canelo.
Those are the things which should allow Smith to keep his distance from the Mexican for extended periods.
At the end of the day Smith is the underdog.
But he’s got the experience and the power to stand toe to toe with easily one of the best pound for pound fighters in the history of the sport.
Saul Alvarez vs Callum Smith Betting Advice
What a fight this should be. The big question is can Callum Smith get the win? It is tempting to roll with him.
He is a natural super-middleweight and he is the top-ranked fighter in this very division.
But we do think that he will just miss out on the big prize at the Alamodome
Key Facts – Saul Alvarez vs Callum Smith Betting Tip
- Saul Alvarez is W11 D1 since his one career loss
- Saul Alvarez is a four-division world champion
- Callum Smith is top ranked super-middleweight fighter
That is because Alvarez just impresses every time that we see him and just remains so consistent.
We expect a slower fight because of ring rust playing a part and each knowing that the other has the power to pull out a fight-stopping blow.
But on points for Alvarez, a technically smart fight we think is the way that this will be settled.
Alvarez on points at 13/8* (odds taken 02:07 GMT, Friday, 18th December).
The best betting odds for Saul Alvarez vs Callum Smith
Saul Alvarez to win: 12/1 at Bet365
Draw: 13/5 at Bet365
Callum Smith to win: 10/11 at Bet365
