For the Romance language-challenged, canelo (Spanish) translates to cinnamon.
And as my blog post title states, "Canelo Isn't Just Good Over Oatmeal," he'll also be good over Austin Trout on April 20.
And here's why.
Saul "Canelo" Alvarez (41-0-1, 30 KO's) has some key advantages (albeit not many) over Austin "No Doubt" Trout (26-0, 14 KO's) in their junior middleweight unification match. He is the harder puncher, has faced stiffer competition and will have a heavily partisan crowd supporting him, as the fight will be taking place in San Antonio, Texas in three weeks.
Trout, to his credit, is the more natural and flexible boxer, has faster hands as well as a seemingly better defense.
Both men appear to have pretty sturdy chins and are in tip-top condition.
I truly believe this fight is going to be very competitive, as Trout seems to have a little bit of Timothy Bradley in him. He's a physically-strong, yet light hitting boxer, with no major fan following. But for what he lacks in fan patronage, he more than makes up for in fighting spirit.
Will Trout go into hostile territory and defeat Alvarez, the same way he did when he dominated Miguel Cotto in Madison Square Garden late last year?
My answer is a "not-so-emphatic" no. I expect Alvarez to win a tight, and possibly controversial decision in a few weeks.