Mayweather vs. Canelo: Breaking Down Each Fighter's Biggest Strengths

Floyd “Money” Mayweather clearly holds advantages over Saul “Canelo” Alvarez in nearly every aspect of the ring, but the undefeated Mexican superstar has a couple of aces up his sleeve that could help him score the upset of the century in Las Vegas on September 14.

Both fighters haven't been able to defeat 40-plus other fighters without having elite talent in the ring, regardless of whom they were pitted against.

Mayweather’s long run as the pound-for-pound king of the sport has legendary written all over it, but he has to turn in another flawless showing if he hopes to ward off a young and hungry contender.

Here are the biggest advantages for each fighter heading into Saturday’s mega title bout.

Floyd Mayweather Jr.

Preparation

Mayweather is going to eventually start showing signs of aging as he inches closer and closer to 40 years old. However, now is not that time.

As he proved in his recent decision victory over Robert “The Ghost” Guerrero, Mayweather is still the same enduring physical specimen he's always been throughout 12 full rounds of boxing. The longer a bout goes, the easier it looks for the undefeated champion.

“[Mayweather] could go 24 six-minute rounds and never break a sweat. He is that well-conditioned,” Yahoo! Sports' Kevin Iole said.

He achieves that kind of superior stamina by being completely dedicated to his craft, both during preparation for fights and in his everyday lifestyle.

 

Defense

ESPN’s Dan Rafael labeled Mayweather as the best defensive fighter of this era. That isn’t a shocker to say the least. Well, it might surprise you if you woke up yesterday after being asleep for the past two decades, I guess.

As a result of a technically sound and stifling defense, Mayweather backs up that claim by limiting opponents to connecting on just 17 percent of their punches and 21 percent of their power punches—the best defensive marks in the sport.

Any power advantage Alvarez might have will mean very little if he’s unable to connect, especially on a combination. Mayweather has proven to be elusive when it comes to escaping after the rare occasion of allowing a punch to break through his defenses.

 

Saul Alvarez

Physical Power

Canelo's significant size and power advantage is nothing new for Mayweather, but Alvarez is going to have a significant weight advantage and a quality strong punch working in his favor. After the weigh-in, Alvarez is likely to bulk back up to anywhere in the mid-to-high 160s to lower 170s before the bell rings.

Alvarez is also very precise when it comes to landing those blows on their intended targets. He currently leads all active boxers, connecting on 52 percent of non-jab shots.

A one-punch knockout is unlikely against Money, but having the physical power and accuracy to land those punches gives him a better chance than most to catch Mayweather off guard.

Youth

Mayweather holds an advantage over Alvarez in the experience department. Clearly, the 23-year-old’s resume isn’t filled with many quality professional boxers, making his performance this weekend somewhat of an unknown.

But with that uncertainty Alvarez also brings a youthful energy and hunger that’s hard to quantify with measurements. I’m sure it’s been said hundreds of times before, but Alvarez has a bright future ahead of him and will do whatever it takes to upset the king.

Make no mistake: Alvarez has never faced an opponent of Mayweather's status. But Canelo also understands what an immense opportunity this is for him to take his young career to unimaginable levels.

While there have been no significant signs Money is losing a step or two, any decline in physical ability or stamina could be capitalized on the by the younger and skilled Canelo.

 

*All statistics provided were obtained from CompuBoxOnline.com unless otherwise noted.