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Alvarez Stops Cintron
By Nat Gottlieb Courtesy of HBO.com
There are three things you can say about Canelo Alvarez
after his fifth round TKO of former champion Kermit Cintron
Saturday night: he is still unbeaten, still an alphabet
champion, and still untested.
The 32-year-old Cintron was supposed to be a step-up fight
for Alvarez, but the Puerto Rican, while game, was clearly a
shadow of himself as he took a steady, patient beating from
the red-haired young fighter until what seemed inevitable, a
fifth round stoppage that thrilled a big crowd in a Mexican
bull ring but left many questions unanswered, prime being,
just how good this 21-year-old prodigy, who began fighting
at 15, can be.
In the flush of victory, Alvarez (39-0-1, 29 KOs) was asked
by HBO’s Max Kellerman who he wanted to fight, and his
answer showed both his immaturity and his great ambition:
Floyd Mayweather Jr.
Based on what Alvarez showed against Cintron (33-5-1, 28
KOs), he is not remotely ready to take on one of the two
best pound-for-pound fighters in the world. One day, yes,
but by the time that day comes, in all likelihood Mayweather
will be retired. With all his talent and potential, Alvarez
clearly is a work in progress.
To his credit Cintron was game, but his punches lacked zip,
and the power that was once his trademark was missing.
Except for a crisp jab and an occasional right hand that
landed, Cintron offered little challenge to Alvarez. More
impressive than the Mexican’s stoppage was the patience he
showed, a maturity far ahead of his years; and that bodes
well for his future.
Unlike typical Mexican warriors who fight with reckless
abandon and are willing to take two shots to land four,
Alvarez worked hard on his defense and fired precision
shots, most of which landed, a trait rare in young fighters,
especially the south of the border variety.
Alvarez set up his TKO by landing left hook body blows,
round after round, which took its toll on Cintron. Canelo
stripped Cintron of whatever power and speed he had left at
this late stage of his career by simply breaking him down.
It was clear in round four that Cintron was not going to
last with the hugely popular young Mexican. A short, crisp
right hand by Alvarez with under a minute left in that round
stung Cintron, and forced him to take a knee for an eight
count. Cintron was able to get up, but a left hook to the
head just before the bell had him hurt again. Had there been
more time, there wouldn’t have been round five.
Cintron came out after the break fighting as if it was the
12th round and he needed a knockout for any chance to win.
He tried to be the aggressor, but Alvarez did not get drawn
into a brawl. Alvarez waited until he could pounce. With
less than 10 seconds left in the round, the fast-handed
Alvarez landed a left-right combo to the head and a straight
right to the body that forced Cintron to bend over,
obviously hurt. The ref jumped in and stopped it before
Alvarez could inflict more damage.
The only troubling aspect of the fight for Alvarez is that
Cintron, a very good boxer and athlete, was able to land his
jab consistently and several clean power shots. Had Cintron
done so four years ago in his prime, one has to wonder what
would have happened. Before Alvarez entertains the idea of
fighting Mayweather, there are plenty of more logical tests
for him in the loaded 154-pound division, including Miguel
Cotto, James Kirkland, Erislandy Lara, Alfredo Angulo and
Cornelius Bundrage. At 21, Alvarez has a world of potential,
but he needs careful matchmaking in order for him to become
the next big boxing superstar, as so many expect.
In the co-feature, unbeaten and highly-touted junior
lightweight Adrien Broner scored an impressive 3d round
knockout of Argentinean Vicente Rodriguez. Often compared to
a young, defensive-minded Mayweather, Broner (22-0, 18 KOs)
showed a lot more aggression than he has in the past while
fighting in front of a home crowd in Cincinnati, and like
Alvarez, the 22-year-old has a huge upside.
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