‘I hate dudes like that’: Berlanga says he’s not a fan of Canelo’s arrogance

Edgar Berlanga will challenge Canelo Alvarez for two world titles on Saturday night.

This weekend marks the Mexican Independence Day weekend show that will be headlined by Canelo Alvarez vs Edgar Berlanga. Here, Berlanga sits down with Chris Mannix to talk about his impressions on this big opportunity to make a name for himself on the big stage and why he’s ready to capitalize on the moment. Check out some excerpts from Berlanga below.

Berlanga on his face offs with Canelo at the press conferences

“Just I don’t like how he was smiling in my face and stuff...I just seen him smiling in my face and I’m from New York, bro. I’m Puerto Rican, bro...even a guy that’s smiling in my face, I want to smack the sh-t out of him, you know what I’m saying? ‘Cause I already know he’s thinking like with a smirk, it’s more like he’s overlooking me, that he think I’m a cake, you feel me? He think like I’m a small platter, that’s easy work.

“For me, I hate dudes like that. Like he a female, you know what I’m saying, like a diva...he’s the type like if his shirt is wrinkled on this side he’ll start crying. So that’s the type of person he is. And then he has all this money, he has all the fame and has all the belts — which I don’t knock his for that — but there’s a way to carry yourself.”

On his confidence that he’ll be able to make this significant jump in his level of competition

“I walk with God, and everything that happened in my life to this point happened for a reason. And I put all my trust and everything I have, I put into the man upstairs, my lord and savior Jesus Christ, man. Because without him I would be here and his plan on everything from my dad going to prison, getting locked up, not having my father there, me staying in the game, me working, him coming out of prison and changing his life...it was all written with the man upstairs, man.

“Everybody know I’m not supposed to be here...at the end of the day, [God] knows why I’m here and the real ones around me know why I’m here and I’ve been doing this sport for 20 years. It’s so crazy that a lot of people get they first title shot with one belt, I’m getting my first title fight, three belts — could’ve been four, could’ve been for the undisputed by he vacated the IBF. So I’m just blessed man, and I’m anointed.”

On why he thinks his power will pose a threat to Canelo that he hasn’t seen before

“He fought a drained Kovalev, bro. If he would’ve fought a real Kovalev, Kovalev would’ve had that dudes face like he had a potato face right here — his nose, he got a little sausage nose, so he would’ve had a potato nose with that jab.

“Bivol is a guy that he just throws a lot of punches, you know what I’m saying? Bivol doesn’t really sit down on his punches, he’ll just beat up off just being consistent with a lot of punches, his in and outs.

“And then he fought GGG at 160 and for me — GGG hits hard, don’t get me wrong, GGG was one of the hardest punchers at one time — but for me GGG, he’s got like that Russian strength but I truly believe he ain’t ever get hit by me before, like a person like me...when I hit somebody bro, I make people think about boxing.”