RIYADH: Mexican boxing star Saul “Canelo” Alvarez reclaimed the World Boxing Council Super Middleweight title after defeating France’s Christian Mbilli by unanimous decision in the final bout of “Mexico vs. The World” in Riyadh on Saturday, as fighters representing the rest of the world secured a 5–4 victory over Mexico.

The highly anticipated main event at The Venue, held as part of Riyadh Season in the presence of Turki bin Abdulmohsen Alalshikh, chairman of the General Entertainment Authority and president of the Saudi Boxing Federation, saw Canelo prevail after 12 rounds against Mbilli.

The three judges scored the bout 115–112, 116–111 and 117–110 in Alvarez’s favor, making the 36-year-old Mexican a world champion at super middleweight for the third time. His performance was built on accurate counterpunching, intelligent movement around the ring and an ability to handle the attacking pressure for which his French opponent is known.

“It’s very difficult to explain this feeling, very difficult to describe. It’s unbelievable. I feel like it’s my first title. Now, after 20 or 21 years as a professional, and 16 years after winning my first world title, here I am winning the title again,” Canelo told the audience

While Canelo’s victory provided a headline moment for Mexico, the wider contest ended in favor of the international team, with fighters from Japan, the Philippines, Saudi Arabia, Kazakhstan and Cuba among those securing victories against Mexican opponents.

Japan’s Reito Tsutsumi stopped Mexico’s Raimundo Rojas Garcia in the second round, forcing the referee to end the contest after a series of powerful punches.

Speaking after the fight, Tsutsumi said his ambition was to become a world champion.

“My biggest goal is to become a world champion. I want to keep getting stronger so that I can achieve that goal as soon as possible,” he told Arab News.

On the stoppage, he said: “I was hoping I could knock him down, but I wasn’t thinking about finishing the fight quickly. It just happened naturally, and when I felt the moment was right, I went for it and got the knockout.”

The Philippines’ Carl Martin also secured a victory for The World, defeating Mexican fighter David Picasso by split decision after a 10-round contest to claim the WBC Silver Featherweight title. Two judges scored the fight for Martin, 95–94 and 96–93, while the third awarded Picasso a 95–94 victory.

Martin said he believed his performance had earned him the decision.

“I know I had won the fight because I threw a lot of clean punches.”

Describing the significance of the result in his second international game, he said: “This is my biggest boxing fight ever.”

Saudi boxer Sultan Almohammed added another victory for the international side, defeating Mexico’s Erik Villegas by unanimous decision after six rounds, marking a successful appearance for the host nation.

Kazakhstan’s Bek Nurmaganbet delivered one of the evening’s quickest finishes, knocking out Mexico’s Marcos Vazquez at 2:57 of the first round. A series of powerful punches sent Vazquez to the canvas, where his head struck the ring floor, prompting medical personnel to intervene and assess his condition.

Cuba’s Brian Leon added to The World’s tally with a unanimous-decision win over Mexico’s Hector Aguirre.

Mexico, meanwhile, secured victories beyond Canelo’s headline result. Jaime Munguia overcame a difficult challenge from Russia’s Nikita Zon, recovering from a dangerous sixth round in which Zon came close to stopping him before regaining control in the second half of the 12-round contest. The Mexican retained his World Boxing Association Super Middleweight title by unanimous decision, with judges scoring the bout 116–112 and 117–111 twice.

Mexican featherweight Rafael Espinoza also retained his World Boxing Organization title after stopping Nicaragua’s Ricardo Blandon 22 seconds into the third round, while Carlos Rojo defeated Romania’s Flavius Biea by technical knockout in the fourth.

“It came down to my training camp and preparation. When you prepare properly, good results should follow. That’s what I did to secure a quick victory,” Espinoza told Arab News after the fight.

He also praised Saudi Arabia’s growing role in boxing, saying: “The work Saudi Arabia has done for boxing has been tremendous. It has created opportunities for boxers like him to come to countries like this and have a platform to showcase their talent.”

With Canelo’s return to the top of the WBC super middleweight division and several Mexican victories across the card, the international team finished ahead, taking the overall contest 5–4.