Canelo Alvarez has knocked out Billy Joe Saunders in the eighth round of their fight to unify boxing’s super middleweight division. Saunders failed to get off his stool in the eighth round with an injury to his right eye.
The referee stopped the contest according to ring announcer Michael Buffer.
It goes as a TKO victory for Alvarez, who moves to 56-1-2 career with 38 knockouts.
There were several judges and commentators that had Saunders ahead on points or very within striking distance. The fourth and fifth rounds felt pretty decisive for the Englishman, and he did a nice job of avoiding Alvarez’s power in the early rounds of the fight. But the official judges did have it somewhat decisively for Canelo after eight rounds, and no judge gave out a 10-8 round at any point.
Canelo vs Billy Joe Saunders scorecards at the time of the stoppage:
— Michael Benson (@MichaelBensonn) May 9, 2021
⚖️ Glen Feldman - 78-74 Canelo
⚖️ Tim Cheatham - 77-75 Canelo
⚖️ Max DeLuca - 78-74 Canelo
But the power of Alvarez, mostly coming from upper cuts and straight rights, really started to add up in the eighth round. He was ready to go and inciting the crowd before answering the bell for the ninth, but it was for naught when Saunders failed to leave his corner.
Here’s some of the action from the decisive eighth round.
CANELO MEANS BUSINESS. pic.twitter.com/cH2Y37vEK3
— DAZN Boxing (@DAZNBoxing) May 9, 2021
Alvarez closed as a -715 favorite to win the bout. On the props and winning method side Alvarez was -114 to win by KO, TKO, or DQ, and +1000 to win in Round 8 at DraftKings Sportsbook.