Undisputed super welterweight champion Jermell Charlo will be moving up two weight classes to challenge super middleweight champion Canelo Alvarez on Sept. 30 on Showtime pay-per-view.
Charlo has exclusively fought as a 154-pounder since 2011.
Although he’s reached the pinnacle of the division by taking the titles away from Tony Harrison, Jeison Rosario, and Brian Castano, Charlo (35-1-1, 19 KOs) said he plans to stay put at super welterweight even after the Alvarez (59-2-2, 39 KOs) fight is complete.
“I want to let everyone know. At 154, I ain’t done yet. I ain’t done yet. But I’m fittin’ to go catch that crown,” Charlo said on Showtime. “Roy [Jones Jr.] was able to move up and down. He did a great job. Shoutout to him. But aye, it’s my turn now.”
Charlo will be looking to accomplish exactly what Alvarez did in 2019 when the Mexican star jumped up two weight divisions from middleweight to light heavyweight to knockout then-titleholder Sergey Kovalev.
Alvarez has been going up and down in weight himself in recent years.
After becoming the undisputed champion at 168 pounds in 2021, Alvarez moved up to 175 pounds in a loss to titleholder Dmitry Bivol in 2022 before stepping back down to 168 successfully against Gennadiy Golovkin and John Ryder.
The current top crop of contenders for Charlo at 154 pounds features the likes of Tim Tszyu, Brian Mendoza, Erickson Lubin, Sebastian Fundora, Jesus Ramos, and Charles Conwell.
Neither of those potential foes could call for Charlo to come close to earning the purse he’ll be getting against Alvarez.
One opponent, however, who can give Charlo further incentive to stay at 154 pounds for a much-desired fight and huge payday is Terence Crawford.
Immediately after Crawford crushed Errol Spence Jr. to become the undisputed welterweight champion, the Nebraskan stepped on top of the ropes and started talking toward Charlo, who was sitting ringside. Charlo stood from his seat and started firing back remarks.
Crawford was also seen saying “you’re next” to Charlo while grabbing his groin area in between one of his two knockdowns in the seventh round.
Charlo and Crawford have been dishing out trash talk toward one another in recent years.
Crawford has claimed that he’d easily beat the Texan because Charlo is not at his level, while Charlo has urged the free agent Crawford to get better aligned with Premier Boxing Champions.
First, however, Crawford will have to finish his business with Spence.
Spence has to make a decision within 30 days of his July 29 loss if he wants to move forward with a rematch or not. If a sequel is in store, Crawford will dictate the terms around the weight.
Spence’s preference is to fight at 154 pounds, and Crawford is open to the idea but hasn’t openly committed to it.
Crawford could be compelled to kickstart his run at 154 pounds in order to challenge the waiting-in-the-wings Charlo for a potential 2024 clash.
Manouk Akopyan is a sports journalist, writer, and broadcast reporter. He’s also a member of the Boxing Writers Association of America and the MMA Journalists Association. He can be reached on Twitter, Instagram, LinkedIn, and YouTube at @ManoukAkopyan, through email at manouk[dot]akopyan[at]gmail.com, or via www.ManoukAkopyan.com.