The long build to Canelo Álvares and Julio César Chávez Jr.’s May 6th clash in Las Vegas has been hailed in some corners for its extremely Mexican aesthetic, while in other corners, the two fighters are very much not the people’s champions. One thing that will probably unite the lovers and haters is the most recent ad for the event, which shows both fighters plowing through a border wall on the way to their Las Vegas showdown.
The unsubtle shot at Donald Trump’s proposed border wall is obvious, and the fact that the biggest fight of the year features two Mexicans fighting on American soil is the cherry on top of the crumbling bricks.
While not all Mexicans and Mexican-Americans believe that Canelo and Chávez Jr. fight for them, having representation at the top of the sporting world, and on a holiday weekend like Cinco de Mayo, can only be good for a country besieged by its northern neighbor’s current political climate. That’s without including the fact that the two will be fighting for a belt made by a huichol artist, as revealed on Wednesday, further linking the fight back to its Mexican roots.
As the fight looms ever closer, fans of the pair of controversial Mexicans hope that their showdown lives up to the hype. Otherwise, the critics will have even more ammunition when it comes to decrying both fighters as “money chasers” and inadequate representatives of their gente.