Anthony Pettis has been inspired by Canelo Alvarez to make a boxing move after one more run at a PFL title.
Pettis, 35, crashed out of the 2022 PFL season last month, when he lost to Stevie Ray in the lightweight semi-finals. The former UFC champion entered the fight with a hand injury and broke his other hand during the bout, so he is planning to sit out and recover from injuries before competing again.
YouTube stars have "opened up platforms" for MMA fighters to compete in boxing and Pettis wants in on the action after one more run at PFL's illustrious $1million prize next year. "For sure," Pettis told Mirror Fighting about a potential boxing move. "There are so many YouTubers fighting now, it's opened up platforms that make it easy to jump on a boxing card, so it'd be cool. Boxing is totally different to MMA, I think that's why these MMA fighters crossing over as they are misjudging what they are going into.
"Boxing is a different science when it comes to fighting. MMA, you have wrestling, kicks, elbows and grappling but in boxing, you only have hands. It's a totally different science, so whoever has more time trained on that science is going to win the fight. I think boxing is tougher than MMA, you can get real brain damage. When you train with real good boxers, you leave the gym like, 'damn that wasn't good for my head'."
Pettis attended Alvarez's past two fights against Gennady Golovkin and will be in attendance for their trilogy fight in Las Vegas on Saturday night. In light of Hispanic heritage month, Pettis said he's been inspired by Alvarez's boxing success and thinks he is one of the greatest Mexican fighters of all time. The American MMA veteran praised Alvarez for still challenging himself against the best fighters in the world despite having made a fortune from boxing.
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"It's crazy, these Canelo fight weeks bring in a lot of big crowds," he added. "Canelo is one of the greatest of all time when it comes to Mexican fighters, he has to be on the greats. Look at all of the weight classes he's fought in, the last fight [a loss to light heavyweight Dmitry Bivol] didn't go his way but he was facing a way bigger opponent.
"Going against Golovkin for the third time, you have to watch the fight. He's definitely motivational, seeing what he's done in his career is amazing. He's accomplished so much and probably has got all of the money he ever needs, but he's still challenging himself against the best fighters in the world, so it's definitely inspiring."
