The rather basic, human element of the sport shone through on Saturday night, for better or worse.
Alvarez acted as the aggressor for the entirety of the bout, even though the most basic of enthusiasts could see plain as day that he was unable to cut off the ring and keep pace with his more agile opponent.
But he was assertive, and sometimes that is all that matters when numbers and a stoppage fail to determine a winner.
The perception around Lara and his strategy were misconstrued from the start, and it's his own fault and that of his corner for not realizing it sooner. Rafael best illustrated the very human, judge-like nature against his case for the win:
Pair backpedaling in every round with simply not being active enough in most, and any claim to victory echoed hopelessly as the audience poured out of the arena.
“I think 100 percent I won the fight,” Lara said, per Mannix. “I was totally in control and it didn’t seem like he was doing anything. I made him look bad in front of all of his people.”
The fact of the matter is that pulling a Mayweather-esque strategy out of the hat doesn't work unless a fighter can actually be as active as Money himself. Considering he's the best on the planet, not many can pull it off in front of professional judges—especially in the face of a talented opponent like Canelo.
For Lara, the loss is somewhat of a killer. He entered the bout as a bit of a no-name face who does not drive any semblance of strong pay-per-view buys. He exits with nothing but a global reaffirmation of his style throughout his more than 20 career fights—nobody wants to step in the ring with him because he consistently employs a run-away style.
When he learns how to fight,” Canelo said, per Mannix, “I’ll give him a rematch.”
I'll beat yo ass then hit a frog splash off the turnbuccle bytch
