Edgar Berlanga was in high spirits after losing to Canelo Alvarez via a 12-round decision last weekend, suggesting he has no intention of winning.
Like others, Paulie Malignaggi didn’t like how happy Berlanga, 27, was after the fight, as if he had done something special by not knocking out 34-year-old Canelo and his lover.
Berlanga took it as a moral victory, going the distance but not fighting hard or trying to win. He fought like a bigger version of Jermell Charlo, who was just there in the lead-up to Canelo but wasn’t willing to walk out with his shield as a champion.
The 193-lb Berlanga (22-1, 17 KOs), who was supposed to compete at cruiserweight, pretended to do something special, winning a round or two against super middleweight champion Canelo at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas. .
It is not surprising that Berlanga was very happy that he was not fired because he received a huge salary of millions that allowed him to live for the rest of his life. In addition, the non-elimination means that there will be other fights that pay well for Berlanga. If Canelo had stopped him, the chances of another big money fight would have decreased.
“I have no problem with Berlanga’s stock going up, but you have to let other people give you credit for the moral victory. You’re not going to be that happy about losing here,” said Paulie Malignaggi on Probox TV, discussing Edgar Berlanga’s happy performance in going 12 rounds against Canelo Alvarez last weekend.
Berlanga’s level did not rise to the serious boxing fans who saw this fight and also noted that he did not try to win Canelo’s fight. Casual people who don’t understand what they’re watching will be happy that Berlanga went 12 rounds, but not anyone else. Even if it was the first boxing match I watched, I would have been bothered by Berlanga’s lack of enthusiasm and smelled a rat. He didn’t try to win. He was just there on pay day.
“To me, he was very happy with a guy who won one or two rounds in a fight and never tried to win a fight. Therefore, there is a change of mind the next time he is tested at this level. I wonder if a boy who thinks like this is capable of doing that,” said Malignaggi about Berlanga.
You could argue that Berlanga doesn’t take his job seriously. The impression I got from listening to him and watching his previous 21 fights is that he knows what his career is all about. It’s just one big marketing ploy to fight the smaller fighters, build a record in defeating fluff opponents, create a false image, and sell it to the public to make a bunch of money.
It worked because Berlanga got a fight with Canelo who has never faced a world class player to get the title. Now it will be cleaned again. Berlanga is fighting a lot of scraps to get a second fight with Canelo or some other popular guy he has no business fighting.
“I think he and Billi are a good fight. I think he and Munguia are a good fight. I don’t know if he is ready for Plant because he showed a different gear that he can actually take to you in the McCumby fight. I had never seen this side of Plant. “He’s a fearsome boxer, but Plant has a dog in him,” said Malignaggi.
Berlanga’s promoter, Eddie Hearn, has indicated that they will give him a soft opponent next in New York or Puerto Rico in early 2025. Hearn says he wants Berlanga to fight Nkulunia, Caleb Plant, or Jermall Charlo. Berlanga has other ideas. He WANTS to fight for the IBF title who will win the fight between William Scull and Vladimir Shishkin. However, Berlanga may not know the IBF’s 10-lb rehydration limit. It will be almost impossible for Berlanga to fight for the IBF belt if he returns to the water up to 193 lbs.
“I would like to see Berlanga fight a hungry fighter like Mbilli, like Pacheco. It’s time to see if Berlanga has that anger. I didn’t see that killer mentality in the Canelo fight. I saw a boy who was happy to survive far away and never try to win the war. I need to see if you have a killer inside. Not against world travelers. Can he mentally get to that point against top-level opposition? He hasn’t shown that to me, even to Canelo,” said Malignaggi.
New Yorker Berlanga had never defeated a world-class opponent to get a title shot against Canelo in the first place. Berlanga-promoted Eddie Hearn earned a title shot against Canelo by defeating local UK fighters Jason Quigley and Padraig McCrory.
It was disturbing that the World Boxing Association gave Berlanga the #1 ranking after defeating those junior boxers. If this match had worked, Berlanga should have at least defeated someone like Diego Pacheco, Osleys Inglesias, Christian Mbilli, or Jaime Munguia to get the #1 position in the WBA.
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