Mexican superstar Canelo Alvarez believes he only has a handful of fights left in his storied career and has already discussed holding the final one at home.
Alvarez (63-3-2, 39 KOs) is scheduled to challenge Christian Mbilli (29-0-1, 24 KOs) for the WBC super middleweight championship on Oct. 31 in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. The 36-year-old multiple weight world champion is entering the twilight of his career -- and told ESPN he would like it to end where it began, in Mexico.
"I want my last fight to be in Mexico," Alvarez said. "When I was there as a fan supporting the national team [in the World Cup in June], I was at Estadio Azteca [in Mexico City] and it's a stadium that gives you an incredible vibe -- a very good feeling. I pictured myself fighting there.
"For one reason or another, Emilio Azcarraga [chairman of Televisa, owner of the professional football team Club America] wanted to speak with me, so we got in touch, had a Zoom call and discussed the possibility of having a fight there in the future. Yes, I can definitely see myself fighting there."
Born in Guadalajara, Alvarez has fought in Mexico only once since 2012, with the majority of his bouts taking place in Las Vegas. His only appearance in Mexico during that time was a unanimous decision win over John Ryder on May 6, 2023, inside Estadio Akron in Guadalajara.
Alvarez, a significant favorite to defeat Mbilli, told ESPN he could likely continue competing indefinitely, but acknowledges there isn't much left to achieve after nearly 70 professional fights.
"Honestly, I feel very good. I could fight a lot longer considering how I feel and how my body is," Alvarez said. "But I also have other goals outside of boxing. I think I've accomplished everything in boxing. From here, there isn't much more I can do. I'm still enjoying the process. ... If you ask me, it would never be enough. If it were up to me, it would never be enough. But I think four or five more fights would be enough. I've already done everything I needed to do in boxing. I've done more than I ever imagined I would."
Eddie Reynoso, Alvarez's longtime trainer, agreed Alvarez is near the end of his career.
"He's in the final stage," Reynoso said. "That's no secret to anyone, not at all. He's already had more than 70 fights; he's been boxing and fighting for 20 years. He's 36, almost 37. I think these are his last fights. We're preparing pretty well, thoroughly; we're doing things the best way possible and we want to keep fighting. We'll see how it goes."