The only sales pitch

There was no scoring controversy. There is no robbery narrative. There were no contested knockouts. Crawford won cleanly. The only highlight of the sequel is whether fans believe Canelo’s fighting ability is less than what he truly is. This is where things get difficult.

The version of Canelo struggling with speed and foot speed in his fight with Crawford didn’t appear out of nowhere. Similar signs could be seen in his previous fights with Jaime Munguia, Edgar Berlanga and Willem Skaar. He controlled these plays and won them, but the urgency was measured and the legs didn’t look explosive. Reaction times are not what they used to be.

He can get through those nights without getting pressured like Crawford did.

So when Canelo says the first fight was marred by cramps and fatigue, fans have to decide what they believe. Was this a physical failure overnight, or the same gradual erosion that occurred more than once?

Boxing fans are used to hearing explanations after defeat. Injuries happen. Bad nights happen. Aging also happens. It rarely arrives at the same time. It shows up in the small moments. Half a step slower. The counter was a beat late. Because the legs didn’t fire, I lost in one round.

The rematch depends on whether people believe in him. If fans think he performed well below his best, they might imagine his next performance to be different. If they think that version of him is who he is now, there’s no mystery. It felt like walking through the same place all over again.

This is the real obstacle. Convincing people that the first battle isn’t the real version is the hard part.