Canelo vs Danny Jacobs: Oscar De La Hoya explains how Alvarez can win unification bout on Cinco de Mayo weekend
Canelo and Jacobs meet at the T-Mobile Arena on May 4
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Canelo Alvarez faces Danny Jacobs at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada on Cinco de Mayo as both men look to become the king of the middleweight division.
The Mexican's promoter Oscar De La Hoya has given his advice as to how he can overcome Jacobs to add the IBF belt to his collection of WBA (Super), WBC, The Ring and lineal titles and reconfirm his position as one of the world's best pound-for-pound fighters.
Canelo comes off the back of a two-fight epic with Gennady Golovkin followed by a routine knockout win over Rocky Fielding in the super middleweight ranks and as he prepares for his first bout of 2019, was offered advice by his promoter and hall of famer De La Hoya.
The Golden Boy Promotions head, speaking to Fight Hub TV, explained that the 28-year-old must target the body of Jacobs and 'break him down'.
“I would tell him to study Chavez, you know? Meaning he would have to go in there, crouch down just a little bit, moving your head, and just keep treading, you know, keep going in and throw combinations. Because if you think you’re gonna outbox Daniel Jacobs it’s gonna be very difficult. It’s easier to go inside and work the body. The body is the one - you have to break him down and hopefully, he’ll fall.
"You never know what Canelo’s gonna do. You just never know. I have no clue what he’s gonna do come May 4th because he’s always changing his style. He keeps learning, he’s growing. So, yeah, we’ll see what happens.”
In facing Jacobs, Canelo comes up against something and someone unlike most fighters in world boxing. The American's career was almost cut short in 2011 when he was given a diagnosis of osteosarcoma, a rare form of bone cancer. Fast forward eight years, Jacobs prepares to make the first defence of his IBF title against none other than Canelo and De La Hoya believes that his 'survivor mentality' could create an undesirable obstacle for the multi-time world champion.
“He has that willpower. You know, he has that mentality of a cancer survivor, you know? Like ‘nothing’s gonna take me down.’ I mean it can be his nemesis or it can be his best friend inside the ring. Because if he thinks that Canelo doesn’t punch hard and he’s gonna want to stay in front of him, who knows, it might be an early night. But if Jacobs really does have a chin and that heart that he possesses, it can be a long night for Canelo.”
Should Canelo come through against Jacobs on Cinco de Mayo weekend, a fight with Golovkin to complete their trilogy seemingly awaits but having already conquered three weight classes, De La Hoya thinks that Alvarez could look to move all the way up to light heavyweight.
“Absolutely [he will face Golovkin]. And there will be a third fight under my conditions, under Canelo’s conditions. There will be a third fight, absolutely. Canelo’s in the drivers seat, he can fight anybody from 175 all the way down to 160...including Andre Ward, if he wants to call him out, including Kovalev, including unifying the titles...”
“Call Canelo crazy but he’s not afraid of no one. I’m hesitant about it but if Canelo wants to do it, he’s gonna want to do it. And he’s the fighter and that’s why we have to respect him.”
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