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Canelo v Mbilli Canelo is a legend of the sport. He turned professional at just 15 years old and has carved out a Hall of Fame career for himself. Canelo is five years older than Mbilli and has many more miles on the clock. He has over a decade of elite-level experience, but he is no longer the same fighter he used to be. The Canelo of 2021 would have beaten Mbilli with ease. Stylistically, he is perfect for that version of Canelo. In his prime, Canelo’s timing and counterpunching were exceptional. He could slip and roll with punches in the pocket and make his opponents pay for any small mistakes. But I do wonder if Mbilli’s all-action style could become a nightmare for this version of Canelo. Mbilli is known for his all-action, aggressive style. He will bring constant pressure, high volume, and knockout power. But he does have more wrinkles to his game. He has a high-level amateur pedigree, representing France at the Olympics. He has a good jab and decent footwork. If he is going to beat Canelo, he needs to vary his entries and not become too predictable; otherwise, Canelo will be able to time him coming in. The promotional A-side is most definitely Canelo. He's been favoured on the scorecards a few times in his career. I think Mbilli will need to win eight rounds clearly to get the decision. He needs to get off to a good start and make Canelo feel the pace of the contest. High intensity and volume punching are the keys to victory for Mbilli. As for Canelo, it's about landing the cleaner punches and the more eye-catching shots. The quality work will come from Canelo and the high output from Mbilli. Canelo also wants to control the tempo of the fight. If he can fight at his own pace and make Mbilli pay for defensive lapses, then he will be victorious. It's a tough fight to predict for a few reasons. What version of Canelo will we see? Will the moment be too much for Mbilli? Will Canelo's counterpunching and timing overcome Mbilli's volume and pressure? One thing's for sure: it's a more interesting Canelo fight than some of his recent ones. There are too many obvious signs of decline in Canelo for me to ignore. He is no longer the elite-level fighter we’ve grown to adore over the years. This is not his usual fight venue of Las Vegas, so Mbilli won’t have to deal with the heavily pro Mexican crowd and the pressure of a Canelo fight week in Vegas. I think that will level the playing field enough for Mbilli to come away with the upset victory. Mbilli ML – 2U Mbilli Points – 1U Draw – 0.5U