Current pound-for-pound top boxer Saul "Canelo" Alvarez will defend his WBA (Super), WBC, and The Ring magazine's super middleweight (168lbs) titles against Avni Yildirim of Turkey at Hard Rock Stadium in Florida, the United States, on February 27.

On December 19, 2020, Alvarez won a 12-round bout over British boxer, Callum Smith, by unanimous decision, bagging the vacant WBC super-middleweight belt and extending his record to 54-1-2 with 36 knockouts.

The 29-year-old Yildirim has 21 wins with 12 knockouts from 23 professional bouts and an amateur record of 120-12, according to BBC.

Yildirim's last fight happened in February 2019, and it ended with him losing by technical decision to former WBC 168-pound champion Anthony Dirrell.