Before Saturday night’s fight, the goal was clear—whoever wins would get a shot at Canelo Alvarez. His Excellency Turki Alalshikh had already set that incentive. Edgar Berlanga, having already suffered a loss to the Mexican superstar, was eager for a rematch. Meanwhile, for Hamzah Sheeraz, it would be the biggest fight of his career. With a perfect image of the prize, both boxers enter the ring on Saturday night’s WBC title eliminator. What happened next?

Sheeraz announced his arrival in the super middleweight division in emphatic fashion. Ignoring all the pre-fight trash talk, the Brit dismantled ‘The Chosen One’ with clinical precision, dropping him twice in the fourth round before delivering a devastating knockout in the fifth at Louis Armstrong Stadium in Queens. Now, Sheeraz wants his prize, calling out Canelo Alvarez after his dominant victory. 

“If I do get the opportunity to fight him, it won’t be one of those where I try to nick it on points, I will stand in the middle of him and have it out. Whoever lands first, I suppose they’re gonna knock out, don’t they?” Sheeraz said during the post-fight interview. Although Canelo is currently focused on his second bout in the four-fight deal with Turki Alalshikh—against Terence Crawford on September 13 at Allegiant Stadium in Las Vegas—Alalshikh himself appears to have given Sheeraz his seal of approval. “Hamzah now deserves Canelo in 2026🔥🥊,” Alalshikh responded with his six-word message.

What makes Sheeraz’s win over ‘The Chosen One’ even more special is that he went into the fight on Berlanga’s home turf in New York as a major underdog, partly due to his last outing against Carlos Adames, which ended with a split decision draw. Despite that, he didn’t just win the fight, but he knocked out Berlanga, something even Canelo Alvarez could not do. 

However, it’s worth mentioning that Jaime Munguia had knocked out John Ryder, something Canelo couldn’t, yet when Munguia came face to face with Canelo, he was utterly outmatched. Regardless, it’s not just the Saudi Royal who’s impressed with Sheeraz.

Ryan Garcia and Claressa Shields’ reaction to the Hamzah Sheeraz win boosts the case for a Canelo Alvarez fight

After Sheeraz’s victory, His Excellency was one of the few to share his thoughts first. “Hamzah Sheeraz knocks out Edgar Berlanga at #RingIII,” he wrote on X with a boxing glove and fire emoji. Even three-weight undisputed champion Claressa Shields had joined the conversation, compressing her thoughts in one word, “Damn.”

Meanwhile, Ryan Garcia, who trained with Canelo Alvarez in the past, also chimed in, utterly impressed with Sheeraz’s knockout. “Damn what a performance for hamzah sheeraz 🥊 A+,” he wrote on X. Despite the excitement, however, it’s yet to be seen whether Canelo Alvarez would accept the challenge from Sheeraz, instead of making bigger fights after Crawford, given he has a last few years left in the sport, as per his own desire to retire at the age of 37 or 38. 

It appears Hamzah Sheeraz may get a shot at Canelo Alvarez before the Mexican boxing legend hangs up his gloves for good. However, only time will tell whether that fight happens. Not to mention, for the fight to make sense, Canelo will have to beat Terence Crawford. Would you watch the fight?