- Hamzah Sheeraz has emerged as the leading candidate for Canelo Alvarez's 12 September Saudi Arabia return — a fight that puts the Brit on a fast track to the very top.
- Christian Mbilli, the WBC champion since Crawford's retirement, is the technically correct opponent — but the WBC mandatory tangle and Mexican ticket money complicate his path.
- If Sheeraz beats Alem Begic for the WBO super middleweight strap on 23 May at the Pyramids, the Canelo case becomes practically unanswerable.
Right Then — Money Is About To Decide A World Title Fight
Right then. Let's not beat around the bush. The most-talked-about fight in world boxing right now is not happening at the Tokyo Dome and is not Wardley vs Dubois. It is the question of who Saul "Canelo" Alvarez fights on 12 September in Riyadh — and the noise out of Saudi this week is that Hamzah Sheeraz has gone to the front of the queue.
That should not surprise anyone with eyes on this. Make no mistake, the Saudi side want a global story. They have one fully formed in Canelo. They want a second story to anchor it — and a 27-year-old British super-middleweight with a 22-0 record and a knockout reel that includes Edgar Berlanga, Carlos Adames mandatory positioning and a very public Canelo callout is exactly the kind of second story that sells a Saudi PPV everywhere from Birmingham to Boston.
Why Sheeraz, And Not Mbilli
Now I'm not saying Christian Mbilli is not the more deserving fight. He is. The Cameroonian is the WBC super-middleweight champion. He earned that belt through the Lester Martinez fight on the Canelo–Crawford undercard in Vegas last September, came up just short on the night, then got handed the strap when Terence Crawford retired and the WBC moved Mbilli up from interim. That is a proper world title and a proper champion.
The problem is the ticket. Mbilli is a 30-year-old French-based fighter from Cameroon who is brilliant on a ten-round fight clock and has an actual amateur pedigree. He is not a story for the Saudi machine. He is not a story for ITV or DAZN UK. He sells in Quebec and Paris and not many places between. If you are Turki Alalshikh and you are writing a 100-million-dollar cheque to a returning Canelo, you are not pairing him with Mbilli unless somebody forces you to.
The WBC Will Not Force It
Make no mistake, the WBC are not going to force it either. Mauricio Sulaiman has spent twelve months bending the sanctioning body to fit the Saudi calendar. Mbilli's mandatory situation is now reportedly a defence against Lester Martinez first — a rematch from the draw that put Mbilli on the map but never resolved itself. That is a genuine fight. It is also one that takes Mbilli out of the September Canelo conversation entirely — and Sheeraz fully understands that.
If you know, you know. The path opens up because the route through Mbilli is artificially blocked, and that's not Mbilli's fault — it is just how the modern sanctioning game gets played in 2026.
Sheeraz Has To Beat Begic First
None of this matters unless Sheeraz does the job on 23 May at the Pyramids of Giza. Alem Begic for the WBO super middleweight title is not a procession — Begic is 21-0, 12 KOs, properly schooled, and has been waiting a long time to land a name on his record. He is not going to roll over for the British star on the biggest night of his life.
I think Sheeraz wins it inside seven rounds. He's levels above Begic on hand speed and he's a proper finisher when he lets his hands go. But the camp has to be all the way switched on, because a slip-up on the Usyk undercard absolutely kills the Canelo storyline before it ever properly forms.
What Sheeraz Brings To Canelo Week
Brilliant question — what does Sheeraz actually bring to a Canelo fight? He brings height — six foot three at super middleweight, a long jab, the kind of frame that has historically given Canelo problems (think Bivol). He brings a 22-0 record and the unbeaten aura that the Saudi project loves. He brings the British market. He brings a nice clean narrative — young Brit takes on the Mexican legend in Riyadh, fight of his life, generational moment.
The actual prediction if it happens? Canelo by late stoppage. I don't think Sheeraz has the experience yet to last twelve with the Mexican, and I think Canelo's body work eventually wears him down. But it'd be brilliant. And in this sport, brilliant is what gets fights made.
Luke's Read
Mbilli is the more deserving fight. Sheeraz is the bigger fight. The bigger fight wins in 2026 — every single time. If His Excellency is writing the cheque, the cheque is for Sheeraz. Beat Begic on 23 May and the Canelo callout becomes the most expensive callout in British boxing this year. Mbilli deserves better, but he'll have to wait — and that, sadly, is the modern game.