The Hamzah Sheeraz demolition job on Edgar Berlanga has sent shockwaves around the super middleweight division. With the victory, the Britton fighter now has a special chance to face Canelo Alvarez next year. A fight that even His Excellency Turki Alalshikh has personally endorsed in his tweet after the ‘Ring III.’

If it were a few months ago, no one would have doubted Canelo’s victory. However, things have changed now. While Sheeraz brutally knocked out Berlanga in the 5th round, the undisputed super middleweight champion hasn’t had an early stoppage win since 2022. Furthermore, his last fight against William Scull might have been the worst performance of his life. Which raises a question: Does Hamzah Sheerez have a chance against Canelo Alvarez? Well, boxing analyst Dan Rafael has an answer.

Canelo Alvarez isn’t the same fighter.

A few days ago, Rafael appeared in an interview with iFL TV. During the conversation, the interviewer stated, “Well, Hamza did what Canelo couldn’t do,” referring to how Berlanga took Alvarez to distance. So, does that make the Slough native a threat if that fight happens in 2026? “I think pretty much any fight against a top-level opponent is going to be somewhat dangerous for Canelo at this point. Just because he’s got so many miles on the tread,” Rafael immediately reverted.

Indeed, at 34, the Guadalajara native is not the same fighter he was once before. His explosiveness has reduced, and he doesn’t take the aggressive action route like he once did.  So, the insider believes a lot will depend on how Canelo Alvarez tackles Terence Crawford in September, if he is even able to. “But I’m not convinced that he wins that(Crawford) fight,” he added.

Meanwhile, Hamzah Sheeraz came up to 168 only because His Excellency tempted him with the glorious Canelo clash. Rafael stated, “One of the things that prompted Sheeraz to make the trip to the New York to New York to fight Berlanga was because Turki was like,’ Hey, that’s the fight and if you win the fight, I’m going to make sure you get a fight with Canelo in 2026.'” And now that Sheeraz has won his fight, the Mexican icon has no choice but to accept the fight as he is contractually bound with Riyadh Season till 2026.

So, as things stand, the next two opponents for Canelo Alvarez in 2026 are Hamzah Sheeraz and Chris Eubank Jr.. Quite an underwhelming aspect. However, Dan Rafael is not the only one who thinks Sheeraz can create an upset to cause a massive uproar.

Hamzah Sheeraz to do the unthinkable

In May, Queensberry Promotions honcho Frank Warren was the first to state that “If Hamzah Sheeraz can beat [Edgar] Berlanga, then I’ve got to fancy him to have a chance of beating [Canelo].” And after the ‘Ring III’ event, he doubled down on his statement. In a clip shared by IFL TV after the event, Warren stated, “Sensational performance, you know. He came to New York and did what Canelo couldn’t do. He stopped the man, and he has put himself well and truly ahead of the mix.”

The promoter predicted a bright future for Sheeraz, claiming that he will soon become the mandatory challenger for the undisputed 168 champion. “I think he’ll go number one, probably on all the organizations now and strength for that,’ he added.

So, with His Excellency’s green light and the buzz around the combat world, we assume this matchup to be locked. Will it prove to be a competitive fight? Only time will tell. However, as everyone said, the fight against Terence Crawford will be a perfect reflection of what we can expect. Do you think Sheeraz poses a legitimate threat to Canelo Alvarez?