Massive underdog confident he will KO Canelo: ‘I’m a knockout artist’

Edgar Berlanga knows he’s a massive underdog, but that’s not going to stop him from trying to shock the boxing world.

Berlanga wants to be the face of Puerto Rico. He can take a step toward that if he defeats WBA, WBC and WBO champion Canelo Alvarez in their super middleweight title fight Saturday at T-Mobile Arena.

It’s not just that Berlanga (22-0, 17 knockouts) wants to beat one of the best boxers in the world in Alvarez (61-2-2). He wants to end the fight by sixth-round knockout.

“I’m a knockout artist,” Berlanga said Wednesday at a news conference at the MGM Grand. “Every fighter wants a knockout.”

It’s ironic Berlanga is calling his shot midway through the fight. He’s coming off a sixth-round finish against Padraig McCrory on Feb. 24 in Orlando, Florida.

Berlanga’s career started with 16 consecutive knockouts. It wasn’t until his previous five fights before defeating McCrory that he went the distance.

The 27-year-old Brooklyn, New York, native is the No. 6 super middleweight staring up at other undefeated boxers in his weight class, such as Christian Mbilli (No. 2, 28-0-0), Osleys Iglesias (No. 4, 12-0-0) and Diego Pacheco (No. 5, 22-0-0).

Berlanga understands the tall task in front of him.

“We know (Alvarez is) a legend,” he said. “We can’t just go in and swing for the fences.”

Berlanga said no one has taken the crown as the best Puerto Rican fighter.

He acknowledged Subriel Matias as one of the best super lightweights in the world, and super welterweight Xander Zayas is 19-0-0.

But Berlanga also expressed disappointment when talking about representing his country. He said he’s heard the noise of Puerto Ricans claiming he’s not authentic because he didn’t grow up on the island.

Berlanga said growing up “in the concrete jungle” of New York helped mold him to where he is now, which is days from his first Las Vegas main event.

“That’s all motivation for us. Social media, people out there talking about me,” Berlanga said. “I’ve been in this position. I’ve been at the bottom of the bottom. It’s not easy coming from New York.”

Berlanga will try to put himself in the company of Floyd Mayweather and Dmitrii Bivol — the only fighters who have defeated Alvarez.

Alvarez, 34, has gone the distance in his past four fights — all wins — since his shocking loss to Bivol on May 7, 2022, at T-Mobile Arena. But he said Wednesday he will knock out Berlanga in the eighth round.

“It’s easy to say (he’ll knock me out). To do it is very difficult,” said Alvarez, a -1,786 favorite. “Saturday night is going to be very difficult for him, that’s for sure.”

Berlanga said he understands he’s walking into enemy territory against Mexico’s best fighter on Mexican Independence Day.

But for someone who said he’s been an underdog his entire life, it’s nothing new.

“It gets no bigger (than this), putting my last name in the history books and put the Latin community out there,” Berlanga said.

Contact Danny Webster at dwebster@reviewjournal.com. Follow @DannyWebster21 on X.