Canelo Alvarez names the hardest puncher he has ever fought ahead of the Gennadiy Golovkin trilogy 

Canelo Alvarez revealed to Fight Hype who the heaviest hitter he's ever faced in the ring is. The answer might surprise a few fans. Initially asked if Gennadiy Golovkin was the hardest puncher he has met, Alvarez denied it and stated:

"Kirkland. He is little but I felt the punch right here [his forearm] and I think, 'Oh my God.'"

James Kirkland and Canelo Alvarez fought on May 9, 2015 in Houston, Texas. The bout was set for 12 rounds, but ended in a knockout during the third with Alvarez walking away with the win.

Nicknamed 'Mandingo Warrior', Kirkland holds a record of 34 wins, 3 losses, and 30 KOs, earning him the title of knockout artist. With a knockout percentage of 88%, he was known to be a strong pressure fighter with enormous punching power, a feat that was not lost on Alvarez during their match.

Alvarez posted this stare-down with Golovkin to his Instagram:

Watch the full interview here:

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Canelo Alvarez on improvement since last 'GGG' fight

In an interview with Boxing Scene, Canelo Alvarez stated that he believes Gennadiy Golovkin will be surprised by how much he has improved since their last fight in 2018.

Alvarez and 'GGG's final fight is taking place in September, marking 4 years since their last match. Alvarez believes his improvements in that time will stun Golovkin:

"I think he's going to be surprised how much I've improved. My resistence, my strength. That will definitely surprise him."

Alvarez added that his most recent loss to Dmitry Bivol is a motivating factor for him to get back into the win column:

"Coming off of the Bivol loss I am much more motivated than before. I always train 100%. I love boxing, that will never go away. I feel different though. More motivated, more dangerous. I really want to be in the ring again. Especially against this guy Golovkin. He's talking a lot of sh*t. It's going to be a good fight."