Saul ‘Canelo’ Alvarez meets Billy Joe Saunders in a mouthwatering world super-middleweight title showdown Saturday night, and we have the latest odds as well as free and expert betting picks.
‘Canelo’ (55-1-2) puts his WBC, WBA and Ring magazine titles on the line while Brit Saunders (30-0) brings his WBO strap to the table.
We’ve already had fight-week drama with Saunders threatening to fly home to the UK because he disagreed with the size of the ring. That is now smoothed over and we can look ahead to Saturday night.
The huge matchup lands at AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas – home of the Dallas Cowboys. A massive crowd of 70,000 is expected with the Lone Star State lifting all COVID-19 restrictions recently.
Canelo vs Saunders: What are the odds?
Canelo is a warm favorite to take Saunders’ WBO belt and move closer to complete domination at 168lbs. And as fight week draws on the odds are getting ever shorter. All the smart money is on the Mexican megastar.
Alvarez is best odds at -625 (bet $625 to win $100) with BetAmerica, with Billy Joe available at +550 (bet $100 to win $550) with William Hill. If you think a draw is the likely outcome, +2200 is your best odds with BetMGM and Borgata Sports.
Latest odds for Canelo vs Saunders from major online bookmakers are:
- DraftKings: -715 Canelo, +475 Saunders, +2000 Draw
- FanDuel: -600 Canelo, +480 Saunders, +2000 Draw
- Unibet: -715 Canelo, +475 Saunders, +2000 Draw
- William Hill: -800 Canelo, +550 Saunders
- BetMGM: -700 Canelo, +450 Saunders, +2200 Draw
- 888Sport: -715 Canelo, +475 Saunders, +2000 Draw
- Borgata: -700 Canelo, +450 Saunders, +2200 Draw
- PointsBet: -770 Canelo, +475 Saunders
- bet365: -700 Canelo, +450 Saunders
- SugarHouse: -715 Canelo, +475 Saunders, +2000 Draw
- BetAmerica: -625 Canelo, +450 Saunders
- Resorts: -909 Canelo, +475 Saunders
NB: Odds correct and updated on May 5, 2021
Predictions & expert betting picks
If you’re a regular reader of OddsCritic, you’ll note we’ve started on a hot streak with our fight tips – including Dillian Whyte to beat Alexander Povetkin in rounds 4-6 at +400 and Jake Paul to beat Ben Askren by KO/TKO/DQ (-110).
This is a terrific matchup, featuring two magnificent fighters at the peak of their powers. For just about all the marbles at 168lbs. Deal us in.
Billy Joe is a superb boxer and can move beautifully. Oh and he’s a southpaw. That sounds like a tough combination for even Canelo to combat.
But the P4P king has looked just sensational in the way he has evolved since those epic fights with ‘GGG’ in 2017 and 2018. And now he looks virtually invincible.
The one result we can’t see is a BJS victory by decision – Dallas will be Canelo’s town Saturday night. We also cannot see BJS stopping Canelo – the Mexican displays a granite chin when he needs it.
So we like Canelo to win – but not at the prohibitive odds being quoted on the money line. Nobody is getting rich off those. Unless they already rich…
Despite his incredible power Canelo has not been a complete knockout artist at the highest level. And remember he struggled against another speedy fighter in Erislandy Lara en route to victory by split decision.
So the smart play is to take Alvarez to prevail by decision or technical decision at +150, catching up with Billy Joe in the later rounds after a fast start by the Brit.
OddsCritic pick: Canelo to win by decision or technical decision at +150 (William Hill, PointsBet, bet365)
What time does Canelo vs Saunders start?
Canelo vs Saunders takes place Saturday May 8 in Arlington, Texas. Ring walks for the main event are expected around 2300 ET (2000 PT).
Where can I watch the fight on TV?
Canelo vs Saunders will be streamed globally outside of Mexico by DAZN – the self-styled ‘Netflix of sports’.
DAZN has spent a fortune investing in boxing in the U.S. since its launch there in late 2018. It inked Eddie Hearn’s Matchroom Boxing to an eight-year deal worth a reported $1billion. Then came a landmark $365million 11-fight pact with ‘Canelo’.
That Alvarez contract ended late last year as Canelo exited that and his agreement with Oscar De La Hoya’s Golden Boy Promotions.
The Mexican megastar – now a promotional free agent – remains on good terms with DAZN though and all his fights since have appeared on the platform, promoted by Hearn and Matchroom.
DAZN is available on a monthly or an annual subscription. A monthly sub is $19.99 while the annual deal works out much cheaper over the year at $99.99.
Canelo vs Saunders weights
The weigh-in for Canelo vs Saunders took place Friday right outside AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas.
Saunders tipped the scales at 167.8lbs – just under the super-middleweight limit of 168.
Canelo meanwhile came in at very slightly lighter at 167.4lbs.
Canelo vs Saunders tickets
It’s been a while since boxing fans were able to properly pack out an arena, and they don’t come much bigger than AT & T Stadium.
The home of the Cowboys can host up to 100,000 people for some events, and a large crowd is expected for Canelo vs Saunders. More than 40,000 tickets were sold during the pre-sale period alone, and they are on general sale now.
‘Canelo’ Alvarez record
Canelo is boxing’s reigning P4P king right now – the widely acclaimed best fighter in the sport.
The 30-year-old from Guadalajara was just 15 years old when he made his professional debut, and he has fought in the paid ranks 58 times now. His record is a stellar one at 55-1-2 – 55 victories with one defeat and two draws. He stands 5ft 8ins tall (1.73m) with a reach of 70.5ins (1.79m).
Canelo’s only defeat was a 2013 schooling at the hands of Floyd Mayweather Jr – no shame at all in being outclassed by ‘Money’ at that stage in his career.
Since then Alvarez has fought pretty much everybody there is to fight – including two epic battles with middleweight great Gennadiy ‘GGG’ Golovkin. Their first fight in 2017 was a draw, while Canelo took the second on points in 2018.
Canelo even went up to light-heavyweight in 2019 to knock out Sergey Kovalev and claim a world title at 175lbs.
Most recently the Mexican looked as good as ever in easily outpointing Britain’s Callum Smith in December and then battering the overmatched Avni Yildirim in February.
Plans are already being made for Canelo to complete his annexing of all the super-middleweight titles with a showdown vs IBF ruler Caleb Plant later this year. Saunders though may have something to say about that.
Billy Joe Saunders record
Billy Joe Saunders cannot match the resume Canelo possesses for sheer depth, but the 30-0 Brit is a superbly talented boxer with a skillset which might just give the P4P king a few headaches.
The 31-year-old from Hertfordshire has fought 30 times in the paid ranks with 30 victories. A total of 14 of those wins have come inside distance. Billy Joe stands 5ft 11ins tall (1.80m) and has a reach of 71ins (1.80m).
Saunders – a stellar amateur before stepping into the paid ranks – sometimes fights down to his opponent’s level. He can seem almost bored at times. But make no mistake, he has the boxing skills to mix it with the very best.
His performance in particular in easily outpointing David Lemieux in Canada in 2017 was simply majestic. A boxing masterclass.
Most recently Billy Joe defended his belt against British veteran Martin Murray in London last December. Another comfortable points win.
Outside the ring Saunders is a colorful character and the build-up during fight week in Texas should be fun to watch.