THE CHAMPION

RINGSIDE

Reporters’ star ratings for main events and undercards are based on in-ring entertainment, competitiveness and whether overall expectation was met

LAS VEGAS, NV

NOVEMBER 6

SHADES of fury pass across Canelo Álvarez’s face. They come and go quick, a storm cloud one moment, clear the next, changing in an instant. After weighing in, he rounded on Caleb Plant with a look of blazing aggression for a final face off, then turning away was almost at once smiling fondly at his young family and waving cheerfully to a legion of fans.

These supporters had poured into Las Vegas almost exclusively to celebrate him. If that energised him, by the time of the fight he was focused, steady, when all around him the sell-out crowd, more than 16,000 strong, roared with cheers of delirious delight. Simply setting foot in the arena at the MGM Grand on Saturday was all Canelo had to do for that mass of fans to hit a deafening fever pitch.

A look of grim concentration took over his expression when the first bell unleashed him on his American opponent and his