Santos Saúl Álvarez Barragán vs. Terence Allan Crawford, Jr.

Canelo is asked how it feels having a "blast from the past" type of camp where he isn't preparing for a larger opponent for once, but a smaller and more mobile one. He says for quite some time he didn't have to utilize a lot of elements (like "angles, and using my hips") and he's back in the groove and ready for this.

 

Bomac is asked (by a reporter identifying as being from Omaha) whether he thinks a victory on Saturday will put him in the conversation for GOAT trainer. He says he just puts his head down and does the work and doesn't worry about stuff like that.

 

Both rebuke a questioner framing this as "their last big fight of their careers". Canelo flat out says he doesn't think it is his, and Bud says he's just focused on the task at hand and not thinking ahead.

 

Bud shouts out the Mexican fans, both the majority who are haters and the few that support him.

 

Max Kellerman gets onstage and says this feels like a holiday for fight fans. He likens Turki to Santa, saying if he was never born we'd never be at this point with so much life being breathed into boxing and giving us mega events like this. He also praises Dana White for building up UFC's brand and making it more popular than boxing. He says this guy knows how to build up an institution. The fans start booing, and Canelo interrupts Kellerman to say "don't say that. Boxing is big. You don't know how big is boxing around the world, and will always get bigger and bigger". Bud laughs and says "no lies".

Kellerman proceeds undaunted, and now gives Nick Khan his flowers for his role in bringing this event to such a broad audience on Netflix. He says more people will watch this than any fight since Ali vs. Spinks almost fifty years ago in 1978.

Max says Canelo isn't just among the greatest Mexicans, but greatest in the world of all time. He says being compared to people like JCC means you're doing something right. He then says Crawford has never come close to losing in his entire career - what?

He says this is up there with a Hagler vs. Leonard type of moment.

He asks the principals if they have anything to add. Canelo just says "you right, Max". Bud looks at the fans and says "BOOO!" (booing back as they had been when Kellerman was talking him up). He then laughs and says "cállate"" - shut up, in Spanish. A small Crawford contingent then starts chanting his name loudly and he keeps encouraging them to drown out the Mexicans.

 

Turki's grasp of English makes Canelo sound like David Attenborough.

 

That was awkward.. Turki finished his speech by saying Dana White has a major announcement, but White then gets on the mic to thank the fans and instructs the fighters to square off for a photo-op and then whispers in Turki's ear. Guess a miscommunication, whatever the announcement was supposed to be it either wasn't meant to be now or something happened to change it.

 

Total event time from the principals taking stage was 52 minutes.

 

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Not sure how impactful this will be, but they just announced during the debut of Turki's new series The Underdog that referee Thomas Taylor will be third man in the ring for Saturday's main event. He's a pretty permissive and hands-off official (think Steve Smoger in days of yore)

We won't be getting any "British" stoppages, anyway.