Canelo Alvarez is expected to be sidelined until at least mid-2026 following elbow surgery

Canelo Alvarez, boxing’s biggest star, had surgery on his arm. His next fight won’t happen until at least the second quarter of 2026, instead of February as planned.

Tenence “Bud” Crawford beat Alvarez, 35, to win the undisputed super middleweight world title on September 13 in Las Vegas. Based on the judges’ scores of 116–112, 115–113, and 115–113, Crawford won by a unanimous vote.

According to ESPN, Alvarez will be out for at least two months before he might be able to start training again in 12 to 15 weeks. He has been having elbow pain for a few weeks.

As part of his four-fight deal with Saudi sports producer Turki Alalshikh’s Riyadh Season, Alvarez (63-3-2, 39 KOs) beat William Scull on May 4 and now faces Crawford. Alavarez said after the fight that he would be willing to fight Crawford again (42-0, 31 KOs).