Saul 'Canelo' Alvarez secured a unanimous decision victory over William Scull in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, to retain his undisputed super-middleweight title. The fight, however, was described as "boring" by Alvarez himself, who criticized Scull's defensive approach. Despite struggling to break down Scull's movement and frustrating tactics, Alvarez's effective body punches ultimately swayed the judges in his favor with scores of 115-113, 116-112, and 119-109. With this win, Alvarez extended his professional record to 63 wins, two losses, and two draws, while also inflicting the first defeat on Scull's career.

Immediately following the fight, Terence Crawford entered the ring, setting the stage for a highly anticipated super-fight between Alvarez and Crawford scheduled for September 12 at Allegiant Stadium in Las Vegas. This announcement, orchestrated by Turki Alalshikh, has generated significant buzz in the boxing world. Crawford, a four-division and two-weight undisputed champion, will be moving up from light-middleweight to face Alvarez. Despite the weight difference, Crawford expressed confidence in his ability to showcase his greatness.

Alvarez, now a two-time undisputed champion in the four-belt era, joins an elite group of boxers including Crawford, Oleksandr Usyk, and Naoya Inoue. Fighting outside of Mexico or America for the first time as a professional, Alvarez adapted to an unusually early fight time to accommodate audiences back home. He started slowly, feeling out his opponent, and gradually increased his pressure, targeting Scull's body with hooks. However, Scull's movement and defensive tactics made it difficult for Alvarez to land significant blows, leading to a frustrating experience for the champion.

The lack of action in the ring prompted the referee to urge both fighters to engage more, reflecting the general sentiment of boredom among the spectators, including Crawford. Alvarez visibly expressed his annoyance with Scull's approach. Scull's complaints about low blows, although mostly legitimate punches, and a warning for Alvarez for punching when Scull had his back turned further highlighted the tedious nature of the contest. Nevertheless, Alvarez's victory was clear enough to set the stage for the Crawford mega-fight.

Alvarez emphasized his excitement at the prospect of facing Crawford, acknowledging him as one of the best fighters. Despite potentially breaking box office records, the choice of Crawford as an opponent has drawn criticism from some boxing purists, who believe Alvarez has avoided a fight with the hard-hitting David Benavidez. Crawford is coming up from 154 pounds to face Canelo at 168, which will serve as the inaugural event for UFC CEO Dana White’s TKO Boxing. Crawford last fought in August, winning the WBA light middleweight title from Israil Madrimov via unanimous decision. Nevertheless, the Alvarez-Crawford super-fight is being touted as the "biggest fight of the past decade."