Could We Ever See Andre Ward vs. Canelo Alvarez?

Between 2008 and 2017, Andre Ward was considered one of the best boxers alive. Many believe that title now belongs to Saul “Canelo” Alvarez. Many fans are now beginning to wonder if we could ever see Andre Ward vs. Canelo Alvarez.

Ward retired from the sport of boxing after his knockout win over Sergey Kovalev back in June of 2017. He’s still just 36 years old, however, and could likely return to the fight game if he chose to.

Today, we’ll talk about the possibility of this dream fight coming together.

Canelo Alvarez is Slated to Return on February 27

There are a huge number of big stars competing in the sport of boxing right now. It seems like each division is now home to household names. There’s no doubt that Canelo Alvarez is one of the brightest stars in the sport right now.

Canelo was thrown to the wolves early in his career. At just 21 years old, he took on Floyd Mayweather in one of the biggest fights of all-time. He ended up losing that fight via decision; the only defeat Canelo has suffered to date.

On February 27, Alvarez will step into the ring once again to take on Avni Yildirim. This fight was ordered as a mandatory defense of Canelo’s WBC super-middleweight title. Some fans are now heading over to Bovada to make their wagers on this exciting clash.

Very few analysts (and oddsmakers) are giving Yildirim much of a shot here. The challenger comes into this fight as the +1400 underdog. He hasn’t faced nearly the same level of competition as Canelo and will need to have a flawless performance in order to secure a win.

Alvarez is considered by many to be the best pound-for-pound boxer alive right now. He’s a devastating puncher with perhaps the best defensive skills in the sport. Bovada has him as the -5000 favorite in this matchup.

Canelo is very likely to pass this next test with flying colors. If that is the case, he has some massive bouts available in the future.

Fans Continue to Discuss Andre Ward vs. Canelo Alvarez

Canelo Alvarez controls the middleweight and super-middleweight divisions right now. He seems almost untouchable inside the ring. Canelo even moved up to the light-heavyweight division and finished Sergey Kovalev with punches.

This wasn’t always the case, though. For many years, Andre Ward was the king of this weight division. He stepped away from the sport and has found tremendous success as a broadcaster since that time.

Fans have been discussing how Andre Ward vs. Canelo Alvarez would play out. It seems as if Andre has been hearing about this fight, too. He spoke to the media about the possibility of this bout coming together and claims he still has what it takes to defeat Canelo.

“I’m retired, so I can’t really talk my talk and have the bass in my voice like I used to when I was active,” Ward said. “Because you know what people are gonna say. ‘Aw, you’re retired, why are you talking like that about Canelo?’ But I’m a first ballot Hall of Famer. I didn’t get to the Hall of Fame believing that any fighter can beat me. I go into a fight with respect, ‘OK, this fighter has punching power, this fighter’s a good boxer,’ you know, you go in there with a healthy respect. But retired or not, I don’t believe any fighter can beat me, and I’m just gonna leave it there.”

This is an extremely fun fight to discuss. Andre Ward is one of the sleekest boxers to ever compete in the middleweight division. He used expert timing and defensive mastery to accumulate a 32-0 record.

Is this a fight that will actually come together? Probably not. Ward seems content in retirement and has a great career behind the analyst desk. He’s a competitor at heart, however, and anything is possible in the sport of boxing.

Other Possible Opponents for Canelo

Avni Yildirim is a fantastic fighter with serious punching power. It seems unlikely he’ll get a victory over Canelo Alvarez later this month, though. It’s no surprise that fans are now beginning to look ahead at who could challenge Alvarez inside the ring.

One name that has been floating around is Jermall Charlo. The current WBC middleweight champion is now 31-0 in his professional career with several title defenses. Many experts believe he’s one of the only men capable of pushing Canelo.

Gennady Golovkin is another possibility. He’s already fought Canelo on two occasions. The first time, the bout was declared a controversial draw. Alvarez narrowly edged out a decision win in the second bout. Fans around the world are curious to see how the trilogy would play out.

Many of the best boxers alive now compete at welterweight. That includes Errol Spence Jr., who seems willing to move up in weight to challenge Alvarez. This would be an incredible bout between two of the top pound-for-pound boxers alive.

There are some incredible fight possibilities on the horizon. Who knows? Perhaps fans will even be treated to Andre Ward vs. Canelo Alvarez sometime in the future. We’ll continue offering updates on these possibilities over the next few weeks.

How do you think Andre Ward stacks up against Canelo? Is this fight possible? Let us know in the comments section below.