Saul Canelo Alvarez told a DAZN Boxing clip posted May 27, 2026, that he still hopes a rematch with Terence Crawford will happen, even though Crawford retired in December at 38 after beating Alvarez in his final professional bout.
Crawford left the sport undefeated in 42 career fights and, by beating Alvarez, became the first three-division undisputed champion of the four-belt era — the first fighter to claim that sort of three-division undisputed status since Henry Armstrong achieved the same feat in 1938. Alvarez framed the prospect of a return fight as a big draw for fans and an outcome others involved want to see.
“I don’t know [if he will return], I am not in his shoes. I know [Turki Al-Alshikh wants to see it] and I hope that fight happens again. That is what I hope,” Alvarez said in the clip, adding that a second meeting “will be amazing for fans” and that he watched the fight back and “saw a lot of things.”
Alvarez, 35, underlined that he will keep moving through his own schedule regardless of Crawford’s status. “I am not going to wait for anybody. I have my plans already,” he said, noting he had elbow surgery during 12 months of inactivity and that he found mistakes in his performance: “Just sometimes your body doesn’t respond the way you want, but I know what was my mistakes. And I can adapt everything to make everything perfect for the next.”
That mix of eagerness and pragmatism frames the immediate reality: a rematch would be one of boxing’s biggest-ticket fights, but Crawford’s December retirement is an immovable fact unless he reverses it. Crawford’s win over Alvarez completed a historic sweep of titles across weight classes and, according to reporting about his post-fight comments, he was uninterested in lingering at super-middleweight or dropping to middleweight.
The fissure between Alvarez’s wish and Crawford’s announced exit creates the story’s tension. Alvarez insists a rematch would be different if it happens — “If the fight can happen again, it’s going to be different,” he said — and he pointed out he learned from the experience: “You always learn something from everything. So it was a good experience, and I enjoyed it a lot.” Yet he also acknowledged frustration over matters out of his control: “Yeah, it’s frustrating, but like I always say, when you cannot control the situation, you can’t do anything.”
What comes next is concrete: Alvarez is scheduled to fight Christian Mbilli on Saturday, September 12, in Saudi Arabia, and he has signaled he will continue to take fights rather than wait. If Crawford remains retired, the rematch will not occur; if Crawford reverses course, promoters and the fans who followed a historic, undefeated run to a three-division undisputed title will face one of the sport’s rarest crossroads.
The clearest outcome today is pragmatic: unless Terence Crawford abandons his retirement, a Crawford–Alvarez rematch will remain wishes and public hope rather than a bout. Alvarez will move on with the Sept. 12 date and attempt to erase the errors he saw when he watched the fight back — and only an unexpected return by Crawford would transform that forward motion into the blockbuster rematch Alvarez says he wants.
