Edgar Berlanga’s fight weight: 193 pounds for Canelo Alvarez

Edgar Berlanga’s reported fight weight last Saturday was 193 pounds for his unsuccessful title fight against WBA, WBC and WBO super middleweight champion Canelo Alvarez in Las Vegas. That's a massive 25.4 pound weight gain from the 167.6 pound the Matchroom-promoted Berlanga weighed last Friday.

Salvador Rodriguez of ESPN Knockout revealed Berlanga's weight, which helps explain the size difference between New York's Berlanga and Mexico's Canelo (62-2-2, 39 KOs), who looked two size classes apart in the ring.

Boxing needs regulation

Fighters who rehydrate to over 85 kg usually compete in the light heavyweight division. [175]not at super middleweight, which has a weight limit of 168 pounds. For Berlanga to gain more than 20 pounds for his super middleweight fights, that means he should compete in the 175-pound class.

If boxing were better regulated and there were sanctioning bodies and commissions enforcing strict rehydration limits, fighters would not get away with gaining more than 20 pounds after weigh-ins because it would be dangerous to their opponents.

“I was told that Edgar Berlanga entered the ring tonight at 193 pounds, 25.4 pounds more than the 167.6 pounds he weighed on Friday. The Puerto Rican won by defeat,” Salvador Rodriguez said on X about the weight at which Edgar Berlanga entered the ring last Saturday night at the T-Mobile Arena for his fight against unified super middleweight champion Canelo Alvarez.

Canelo should have insisted on a rehydration limit for the fight to prevent Berlanga from gaining more than 25 pounds, but even then it might not have worked considering modern methods of rapidly regaining water in a matter of hours.

Weight tyrants must be eliminated

It's hard on the body, but younger fighters can do it without it making them sluggish. That's why you see a lot of what some fans call “Weight tyrants” in boxing who fight below their natural weight class to gain a massive advantage over their smaller opponents.

For example, if Berlanga fought where he belongs, at light heavyweight, he probably wouldn't do well and wouldn't be among the top 10 in his division.

Even with a savvy promoter, a fighter with limited resources like Berlanga would be overwhelmed in the light heavyweight division and his career as a valuable fighter for networks like DAZN, where he emphasizes the Puerto Rican aspect, would quickly be over.