As far as Canelo Alvarez is concerned, there is only one man that can be considered the greatest fighter his country has ever produced.
The 35-year-old himself is widely regarded as a top-10 fighter to have emerged from the North American nation, especially when considering his success between middle and super-middleweight.
After claiming a career-best though controversial victory over Gennady Golovkin, his fiercest rival at 160lbs, in 2018, Canelo defended his titles against Daniel Jacobs – producing arguably a career-best performance – before dethroning Sergey Kovalev at 175lbs.
It was at 168lbs, though, where Alvarez became an undisputed champion, collecting all four major belts with victories over Callum Smith, Billy Joe Saunders and Caleb Plant.
In that sense, Canelo boasts one of the most comprehensive resumes when compared to a selection of his countrymen, all of whom having also reached world honours.
One man who the four-division world champion would never even attempt to compare his resume with, however, is Julio Cesar Chavez.
The former three-weight world champion enjoyed a terrific 90-fight unbeaten run before losing to Frankie Randell, who he defeated in their immediate rematch, in 1994.
Prior to that, Chavez had amassed career-defining wins over the likes of Meldrick Taylor and Hector Camacho, before boxing to a controversial draw – where many believe he lost – against Pernell Whitaker in 1993.
Still, while speaking with Chavez after the then-58-year-old’s exhibition match with Camacho in 2021, Canelo silenced any debate over who the all-time greatest Mexican fighter really is.
“Chavez will always be the greatest Mexican fighter ever.”
Salvador Sanchez is also considered among the greatest Mexican fighters of all time, while the trio of Juan Manuel Marquez, Erik Morales, and Marco Antonio Barrera is never too far removed from such discussions, either.
