Look, I’ve covered enough wars in the squared circle to know that boxing doesn’t just break your body—it tests your soul. And right now, Saul “Canelo” Alvarez is staring down one hell of a test. The man who built an empire at super middleweight, stacking belts like they were poker chips, just got word that his right elbow—banged up from that brutal September 13 showdown with Terence Crawford—needs the knife. Surgery in San Diego, sources say, to fix what he gutted through in Vegas, where Crawford won the undisputed crown in a fight that left us all in awe.

This isn’t some minor tweak. Canelo’s out for the count until at least the second quarter of 2026, pushing his ring return to somewhere between April and September of next year. That’s two months post-op just to heal the wound, followed by 12 to 15 weeks of rehab before he can even think about shadowboxing without wincing. Forget that February Riyadh comeback everyone was buzzing about—Turki Alalshikh’s four-fight, $400 million deal with Canelo just hit a speed bump. The promoter’s already scrambling for alternatives, floating names like David Benavidez or Devin Haney to keep the super middleweight machine humming without its kingpin.

Canelo, at 35, entered that Crawford bout as the favorite, but Crawford moved like a ghost, picking apart Canelo’s power with precision that exposed every crack. The elbow injury? It was there all along, a nagging gremlin that turned Alvarez’s vaunted right hand into a question mark. He fought through it like the Jalisco warrior he is, but losses like that—decisive, humbling—don’t just fade with ice packs. And now surgery, his third career procedure after the knee in ’18 and wrist in ’22. The body’s whispering what the heart refuses to hear: time catches even the greats.

But here’s where I push back on the doubters already circling like vultures. “Is Canelo finished?” some talking head asked this week. Finished? Please. This is a man who’s reinvented himself four weight classes deep, turned slaps from Gennady Golovkin into symphonies of redemption. Yeah, Crawford exposed vulnerabilities—slower feet, a chin that’s not invincible anymore—but surgery isn’t retirement. It’s a reset. Give Canelo six, nine months of that relentless gym grind, and he’ll be back, leaner, meaner, with that fire in his eyes that says, “Not done yet.” He said it himself post-fight: “I still have fights left in me. This is not the end.”

The division won’t wait, though. With Canelo sidelined, Alalshikh’s Riyadh machine rolls on—Benavidez could snag a shot at the vacant throne, or hell, even a Crawford rematch gets tabled for later. Names like Hamzah Sheeraz, Chris Eubank Jr., or Dmitry Bivol are floating for Canelo’s eventual return. And Cinco de Mayo 2026? Mexican Independence Day? Those are Canelo’s playgrounds. Mark my words, he’ll circle one on the calendar, elbow good as new, ready to remind the world why he’s the face of this sport.

Boxing’s cruel like that— it gives you glory, then yanks the rug. But Canelo Alvarez? He’s the type to get up, dust off, and swing harder. Heal up, champ. The ring misses you already. We’ll be ringside when you roar back.

By Vincent

Photo Courtesy of AP

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