Canelo Alvarez targets September return as ‘Plan A’ comeback opponent is announced

It has now been made perfectly clear when Canelo Alvarez is planning to return to the ring and who he wants to fight.

Canelo was last in action in September when he defended his undisputed super-middleweight crown against Terence Crawford at the Allegiant Stadium in Las Vegas.

Alvarez was seen as a big favourite heading into the bout, having previously been unbeaten at 168lbs, along with the fact that Crawford was stepping up two weight divisions.

An upset occurred though as ‘Bud’ was able to claim a unanimous decision victory to leave Canelo without any belts and have many fans wondering what could be next for the the Mexican superstar.

Some speculated that it could be time for retirement, due to Canelo now being 35-years-old and having competed professionally for over two decades, but it has now been revealed exactly what his fight plans are.

According to journalist Salvador Rodriguez, Canelo’s trainer Eddy Reynoso has confirmed that the Mexican icon won’t be competing on his traditional Cinco de Mayo date in May, and instead is targeting a September return with Crawford their ‘Plan A’ opponent.

“Eddy Reynoso has just confirmed that the return of Canelo will not be until the month of September, this is him seeking a rematch against Terence Crawford. There are no negotiations yet, however, it is plan A for the return of the multiple time champion. For the first time since 2020 Canelo will not have a fight in May.”

Alvarez underwent elbow surgery following the loss to Crawford, with that seemingly now contributing to the proposed September 2026 return. The potential one-year gap between fights will have been his longest inactivity since 2020.

As for Crawford, while a rematch against Canelo could indeed happen in late 2026, he is still likely to compete prior to that, with a move to middleweight in a bid to become a six-weight world champion one of the possible options for the American.