The Knockout: Jacobs’ Only Formula to Defeat Canelo Alvarez

Even more than the stoicism he displayed in abundance in order to defeat cancer and then later go through the intense painful physical therapy sessions, the American Daniel “The Miracle Man” Jacobs needs to invoke his knockout power to defeat the Mexican Saúl “Canelo” Alvarez. The two face each other May 4^th at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas, where the IBF World Middle Weight Title, WBA Super World Middleweight Title, and the WBC World Middleweight Title will be put on the line.

Due to what the redheaded Mexican has accomplished in the trajectory of his career, it seems that no other formula exists that could possibly lead to the North American’s victory, aside from the knockout.

Alvarez v Jacobs did not come about casually, as the redheaded “Canelo” has been manifesting for months, the idea of becoming the only Mexican in history to posses four titles at once in the same weight class. And Jacobs is one of the obstacles he must overcome in order to achieve that goal. The other two current world champions are the Americans Demetrius “Boo Boo” Andrade (27-0-1, 17 KOs) and Rob “Bravo” Brant (25-1-0, 17 K0s), holders of the WBO and “regular” WBA Middleweight titles, respectively.

In order to give the Jacobs fight relevancy, “Canelo” has stated on various occasions that they are the two best fighters in the division, undermining the accomplishments of the Kazakhstani Gennady “GGG” Golovkin, whom he faced on two memorable occasions. The first bout ended in a draw and the second with a majority decision (two judges scored the fight 115-113 and the other gave 114 points to each competitor). Both decisions left many unsatisfied, considering that Golovkin deserved the victory in their initial confrontation.

The physical and technical variables favor Jacobs: he’s taller, faster, stronger and has superior movement inside the ring.  On the other hand, Jacobs wasn’t at his best in his most recent fight, which he won by split decision against the Ukrainian Sergiy “The Technician” Derevyanchenko on the 27^th of October at the historical Madison Square Garden in New York, where he acquired the vacant IBF World Middleweight Title. This was his third successive victory, after unanimously losing to Golovkin, on March 2017, also in the legendary arena of the Big Apple.

The Mexican, on his end, is strong and resilient, possessing a left hook which is his most lethal weapon, ravaging the very existence of his opponents when he lands it flush. This will be the biggest concern for Jacobs defensively from start to finish. Due to his superior stature, his torso will be easily targeted by his opponent’s most devastating weapon.

In his last fight, the man who defeated cancer lacked potency behind his strikes, speed to move around the ring, and the ability to maintain the volume of his punches. Under the critique of some, the North American’s skills have been receding, which caused Alvarez and his representatives to take notice and seize opportunity.

“Canelo”, who opened as a favorite, recognizes that Jacobs style is complex and will present a difficult fight, but states that he has enough experience to adapt to any rival, as he has demonstrated throughout the length of his career against other world renowned boxers.

Prognosis: “Canelo” Alvarez by decision.

Translated by E.G. for J.J. Alvarez of Boxeo.tv

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