Boxing
Canelo Alvarez vs. Edgar Berlanga: Former world champion says one fighter is 'trying too hard'
Watch Canelo vs. Berlanga live Sept.14 on DAZN
Paulie Malignaggi isn't buying what Edgar Berlanga is selling.
Berlanga faces Saul "Canelo" Alvarez this weekend, live on DAZN, with Alvarez defending his WBA, WBC and WBO super middleweight titles against the 27-year-old New Yorker.
The lead-up to the fight has seen a confident Berlanga explain why he's a threat to the champion, notably stating that his power will lead to a knockout victory over the Mexican star.
While Alvarez would be wise to heed the words of an opponent that has 17 knockouts to his name, former two-weight world champion Malignaggi doesn't think Berlanga's confidence is well-founded.Â
In fact, Malignaggi says that if there's a stoppage in Saturday's fight, it'll be Alvarez on the winning end of it.
"I think Berlanga has been saying he's going to knock out Canelo in six rounds," Malignaggi told canadacasino.com. "I mean, [Gennadiy] Golovkin couldn't even put Canelo down, so that's a hard thing to accomplish.
"Berlanga’s lack of experience at this level is showing, and it’s coming across as trying too hard. To predict a knockout in six rounds over Canelo is ridiculous. Even the best fighters don't make such claims. It shows Berlanga might feel out of his element.
"I just hope we get a good fight, and if Berlanga shows he belongs, he can stay at the top of the super middleweight division. But I think Canelo wins in 6-8 rounds."
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