Berlanga: Canelo Rematch & 168-lb Takeover?

Edgar Berlanga says he plans to “take over” the super middleweight division after he beats Hamzah Sheeraz on Saturday night in Queens, New York. He also wants a rematch with Canelo Alvarez to be given to him.

Canelo Rematch: Berlanga’s Delusion?

The odds of Edgar (23-1, 18 KOs) getting the Canelo rematch are zero in his next fight, and he isn’t taking over the 168-lb division.

You can never be too sure what Turki Alalshikh is going to do, because he’s made some weird fights in the last two years that have nothing to do with sports. Still, it’s doubtful that Turki will give Berlanga the fight he wants against Canelo.

“My plan is to take over the 168-lb division. Hopefully, after this fight, I would love to run it back with Canelo. If not, I’m looking forward to fighting one more time this year in November or December,” said Edgar Berlanga to Ring Magazine’s channel. “I’m going to dust this dude, sweep him up, and send him back to the UK.”

You know it wouldn’t be a Berlanga interview without him saying he expects a rematch with Canelo if he’s victorious against Sheeraz on Saturday. Edgar wants to jump the line in front of all the contenders who have been working for a title shot against Alvarez. This would be only the second fight for Berlanga since Canelo blanked him last September.

In Edgar’s bounce-back fight, promoter Eddie Hearn fed him a tomato can, Jonathan Gonzalez-Ortiz, and he wiped him out in one round. He grumbled about not being in the main event, despite his opponent being beyond mediocre. There was no way Berlanga would have been allowed to headline on DAZN against this type of opponent.

Berlanga vs. Sheeraz: Fight Analysis

“I got a thing with Irish people. I knocked out three of them,” said Berlanga. “I know he’s got a little chip on his shoulder, [trainer] Andy Lee. I’m way above his level. He [Sheeraz] has nothing for me. There’s nothing he can do that I haven’t seen before. I don’t care about his height or his reach.”

Berlanga is the favorite against Sheeraz, but it wouldn’t be a surprise if he loses. His resume is even worse than Sheeraz’s. The only notable fighter Berlanga has faced during his career is Canelo, and he wasn’t competitive in his loss to him.

“I just got to be Edgar Berlanga and follow the game plan that we have. We’ve been working on it for ten weeks. It’s going to be a bad night for them for sure. We already got the win,” said Berlanga.

Sheeraz can punch, and if Berlanga gets reckless like he was against Canelo, he’ll get dropped. Berlanga was dropped by journeyman Marcelo Coceres and struggled to beat Steve Rolls and Roamer Alexis Angulo.