Canelo Alvarez dropped a game Liam Smith three times and knocked him out with a body shot in the ninth round to claim the WBO Junior Middleweight Championship in front of 50,000-plus fans on Saturday night at AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas.
Alvarez (48-1-1, 34 KO) entered the ring as a heavy favorite and came right out of the gate as the aggressor. He was much faster and stronger than Smith and made a concerted effort to attack the body early and often.
Those shots paid immediate dividends in zapping an opponent who was making his first appearance in the United States and carried virtually no name recognition on this side of the pond.
Smith (23-1-1, 13 KO) weathered the early storm and seemed to be working his way into the fight. He was able to land with some consistency against Canelo, particularly when he languished on the ropes, but didn't have the power to dent the bigger, stronger man.
Canelo dropped him in the seventh round with an overhand right from off the ropes and followed up with body-shot knockdowns in the next two rounds to put an emphatic end to the night and secure his fourth world title.
Knockout Video:
Full Fight Replay video will be available shortly
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