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LAS VEGAS: American boxer Terence Crawford, who on Saturday was crowned undisputed world champion in the super middleweight division after a unanimous-decision win over Mexico’s Saul “Canelo” Alvarez, took aim at his critics who questioned his abilities, saying the “clear favoritism” partly motivated his victory.

Celebrities, boxing industry leaders and audience members seemed to favor Canelo. This was noticeable in the fight build up and the stadium’s atmosphere.

When Crawford entered the ring, musicians played Mexican music, and the audience jeered and shouted “Canelo, Canelo” at an ear-shattering level.

The stadium lighting reflected the green, white and red of the Mexican flag in the seating arena.

When Canelo entered, another mariachi band played popular Mexican songs, and the stadium lights created a reddish glow to reflect his ginger hair and freckles — canelo is Spanish for “ginger.”

In a press briefing attended by Arab News following the headline clash, staged under the banner of Riyadh Season 2025, Crawford stressed that he respected Canelo but could not say the same for those who predicted that he would lose.

“That’s all they say I am, in fighting, is nobody. So what can they say now?” Crawford said. “Somebody tell me, what can you say now?”

Crawford called his victory a “signature win” over Canelo, who was undefeated in the super middleweight division.

“I feel great because they’d been doubting me. When people doubt me, they doubt my team. They think my team can’t take me to where I want to go because they don’t have the recognition of being in a big city and have this big following,” Crawford said, referring to his hometown of Omaha, Nebraska.

“It’s a lot of disappointed people going home tonight. Some of them are going to cry but that’s part of the sport,” he added.

“All the time … they said I wouldn’t fight nobody, I can’t beat this dude, I can’t beat that dude. Every time I got a chance, I wiped the floor with them … I'm happy that everything played out the way it did, and you’re looking at the undisputed champion of the world right here.”

Canelo said: “We knew Crawford was a great fighter … I tried really hard. He deserves all the credit. I tried my best tonight.”

The fight was organized by Turki Alalshikh — chairman of the General Entertainment Authority and president of the Saudi Boxing Federation — along with Riyadh Season, Netflix and the UFC.

In a statement released after the fight, the GEA said Crawford unified all the major world titles, achieving a rare feat in the sport’s history that secures his place at the top of the global boxing scene.

Celebrities attending the fight included Jason Statham, Mark Wahlberg, Josh Duhamel, Rob Lowe, Tracy Morgan, Holly Madison, Mike Tyson, Julio Cesar Chavez, Sofia Vergara, Tommy Hearns, Dave Chappelle, Charlize Theron, Michael J. Fox, Charlie Sheen, Jeremy Renner, Magic Johnson and Logan Paul.

Like many celebrities and media who attended the fight, Duhamel — who starred in daytime soap opera “All My Children” and in many movies, including “Transformers: The Last Knight” — predicted that Canelo would win. 

“I’ve always been a big fan of his,” Duhamel told Arab News. “But Crawford is amazing too. They’re both good.”