Canelo Alvarez on his return to boxing after Terence Crawford loss: 'I feel like I'm 26 years old'

Saul "Canelo" Alvarez returns to the ring Saturday after more than a year away, and for those who only casually follow the journey of boxing's biggest star , one word may come to epitomize his fight against WBC super middleweight champion Christian Mbilli: Redemption.

Canelo, 36, is a veteran of 68 pro fights. His longtime trainer, Eddy Reynoso, has insisted to Uncrowned before that Alvarez fought at least 10 more during his teenage years in Mexico, but those remain unlisted by boxing's data-keepers, even if they've lobbied to have them included on his record. Regardless, he's battle-tested and battle-hardened.

Unusually durable. Occasionally destructive. Alvarez is renowned as much for his wars with Gennadiy Golovkin as he is for breaking the jaws of lesser foes, like Billy Joe Saunders in 2021, or, if Ulises Solis is to be believed, outside the ring in 2011 too .

The risk in competing in the kinds of fights Canelo has taken on is that losses become a reality. Canelo has three of them: To Floyd Mayweather, Dmitry Bivol, and Terence Crawford, the latter of whom beat him last year in Las Vegas . Alvarez hasn't fought since.

He had arthroscopic surgery on his left elbow in late October 2025, approximately six weeks after his unanimous decision defeat to "Bud." During his recovery, he said he was thinking solely about boxing and how he can win back the world titles he lost to Crawford.

This Saturday at the Kingdom Arena in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, he gets the chance to claim one of them back.

It would be easy, then, to reduce Alvarez's journey back to the ring as one of redemption, as so many likely will. But, really, it's about so much more.

It's about a loss of control, and whether Canelo has really regained any within the sport he has dedicated his life to.

It's about a man who was once in complete control inside the ring; a fighter who had control over what happened to an opponent's body, now contemplating whether he has lost a step. Worse, whether he's lost his mental edge.

Immediately after losing to Crawford, Canelo conceded that, despite trying, "your body just can't take it anymore."

"Reynoso was telling me everything I needed to do," he said at the time, "and I tried. But my body wasn't responding. I had cramps in my legs."

Yet it wasn't just about losing control over a physique that had, for decades, been his edge. Yes, he was stocky. Resilient. Economical. But against Crawford, there was more.

"When you lose, you always look back at your mistakes," Alvarez told Uncrowned ahead of Saturday's return. "At this level, there's very little between a win and a loss. I did a good job of preparing for that fight, but throughout fight week my mind wasn't there."

Those around Canelo suggest the 13-month break since has only benefited him.

In DAZN's recent documentary, "Saul — The Return of Canelo Alvarez" , Reynoso described his fighter as "recharged" following the defeat: "He is more motivated with unfinished business. That's what has driven him to work harder for this fight."

There are consequences to working hard in the gym today that were absent from Canelo's prime, though. "He gets tired because he's human," Reynoso said.

"I hope more than anything to win the fight and show that we can still be relevant in boxing."

"Saul soon will turn 37," he finished. "It's no secret that we are in our last fights."

Canelo may feel different. He is, after all, one of the sport's most stubborn men. He's determined to win each of his world titles back, one by one, starting with Mbilli on Saturday. And, when speaking to him, there is never a question whether his heart is still in the game. "I love boxing," Alvarez told Uncrowned.

"I enjoy boxing a lot and I always give 100% in the gym because I really love what I do. Boxing is my passion."

"I feel like I'm 26 years old," he added. "I believe in that. I'm [going to] show Mbilli what level of fighter he's facing."

If Mbilli were fighting Canelo when the Mexican was actually 26, when he knocked Liam Smith out with a body shot, there would be little question that the hulking Canada-based bruiser would fall too.

But this is a different Canelo. This is a Canelo who hasn't scored a knockout in the past five years, not since he stopped Caleb Plant in the 11th round in November 2021.

Alvarez insists he's recovered from the Crawford loss, from the surgery, and from accumulated wear and tear. And though he is one of the sport's biggest names, he even linked up with fellow modern-day pound-for-pound great Oleksandr Usyk after relocating his camp to Spain for this comeback.

"He came for two to three days [to the gym] and I enjoyed it a lot. I appreciate them for leading my training in the gym," Alvarez said of the collaborative work with team Usyk. "I used their people for strength and conditioning. They helped us, Eddy and me.

"Usyk is [funny]," he added. "We talked and you realize why he's the champion he is. The mentality is everything."

It is an old adage that fights are already won or lost before either fighter even steps through the ropes and hears the opening bell.

Canelo himself concedes his fight week mentality before boxing Crawford left a lot to be desired. And his preparations for Mbilli, in Riyadh, could also have been smoother.

The Saudi Arabian capital, you see, has been subjected to repeated missile attacks from Yemen's Iran-backed Houthi rebels throughout October . It comes amid escalating conflict between the Houthis and Saudi-backed forces.

The Houthis targeted King Khalid International Airport in Riyadh, killing 13 people and injuring more than 300 in an attack on Oct. 10, prompting its closure and throwing international travel into disarray .

Tennis and golf events in the region were postponed.

Alvarez's fight with Mbilli, though, remained on the calendar.

One of the sport's central financiers, Turki Alalshikh, said earlier this month that Alvarez "fears nothing," while insisting the show would go on.

But the Houthis have warned that Riyadh's airport remains a military target, leaving the region under the threat of further attacks just days before Canelo and Mbilli are due to fight 20 miles away.

And so you cannot help but wonder whether this is yet another situation that is out of Alvarez's control, and if it has affected his training, his mindset, or both.

"I see a beautiful Riyadh," Canelo said upon his arrival in Saudi Arabia . "I saw in the media a lot of things [about the attacks], but I was confident of coming to Riyadh … I feel safe, like in my own home. I don't see anything bad."

Canelo has tried for more than a year to recapture the control he's long had over his mind, his body, and his destiny.

On Saturday, against Mbilli, he will discover how much of it remains in his own hands.