Trainer Jose Benavidez Sr. says undisputed super middleweight champion Canelo Alvarez could beat Terence Crawford even when he hadn’t brought Jaron ‘Boots’ Ennis into camp to mimic his fighting style to make use of for sparring of their headliner on September thirteenth in Las Vegas.
Is Ennis’s Sparring a Distraction?
“It’s funny that he brought Ennis to his camp. They know what they’re doing. Even when he hadn’t brought him, I feel it will be the identical thing,” said Jose Benavidez Sr. to MillCity Boxing, reacting to Canelo Alvarez bringing Jaron ‘Boots’ Ennis into camp to assist train for his fight against Terence Crawford on September thirteenth.
Canelo has the scale, power, and division familiarity advantage over Crawford for this fight. Crawford is moving up two divisions at 37 after an extended layoff. Those are areas that might factor into the outcomes. Crawford has the ring IQ and the mobility that may help him avoid Canelo’s shots.
“I respect the undeniable fact that he got the perfect possible sparring he could find for Crawford to win this fight,” said trainer Stephen Edwards to YSM Sports Media, talking about Canelo using Ennis as his sparring partner late in camp.
Canelo needed a smaller fighter to assist prepare him for Crawford’s style, and Ennis is a welterweight. That works well for Alvarez.
“If Crawford doesn’t move and stands in front of him, Canelo can really hurt him. Crawford has never been hit by a giant guy like that,” said Benavidez Sr. “Canelo has been hit by a whole lot of guys that hit harder than Crawford, I imagine. I don’t think Crawford has the ability to stop Canelo, but you never know.”
The Blueprint for Victory
Crawford’s trainer, Brian ‘BoMac’ McIntyre, said early within the camp that they might be following the Floyd Mayweather Jr. and Dmitry Bivol blueprint on how they fought Canelo. Those two fighters used a whole lot of in-and-out movement to avoid getting hit by the hard shots from Alvarez.
“People aren’t giving Crawford a probability due to weight and the way big Canelo is. Sometimes, we see big upsets. I just think Crawford is super small. But when he’s in a position to drop Canelo, that might be an excellent surprise,” said Jose Sr.
Many fans and media members are giving Crawford an ideal probability of defeating Canelo. Although Canelo is the betting favorite, a whole lot of people imagine Terence will win. They indicate that his last fight against Israil Madrimov on August 3, 2024, was the best preparation for Alvarez.
— Boots (@JaronEnnis) August 23, 2025
Crawford’s Weight and Stamina
“He can win the fight like that, but he must be in really good condition,” said Benavidez Sr. when asked if Crawford can beat Canelo without getting hit by boxing. “I don’t know if those extra kilos are going to assist him to have the identical stamina to have the identical footwork. If he can try this, we’re going to see someone beating Canelo.”
The load that Crawford has placed on during training camp is what causes doubts with some boxing experts about his ability to maneuver across the ring without tiring.
“If he’s carrying that much, he’s going to lose his speed, and that’s his biggest weapon,” said former four-division world champion Mikey Garcia about Crawford’s weight gain.
Last Updated on 08/25/2025