The Canelo PPV numbers for his successful title defense against Edgar Berlanga on September 14 were ratified after Oscar De La Hoya’s harsh words.
Promoter De La Hoya predicted Canelo’s clash with Berlanga wouldn’t sell more than 100,000 units last week and backed his statement after the fight. However, Leonard Ellerbe and Stephen Espinoza, who are involved with Premier Boxing Champions, certified a report of 650,000 buys and a gate of over $17 million.
Everything about Canelo vs Berlanga was a success, leaving De La Hoya red-faced.
Ellerbe took pride in throwing those numbers back at De La Hoya. The former Mayweather Promotions CEO said, “Didn’t somebody say his event wouldn’t do 100,000 buys?
“Imagine jumping out there and saying that dumb s***. You definitely are a certified hater!”
Espinoza quoted the numbers and added, “Congrats to Canelo on another massive event.”
It seems that going against Canelo is a tough job for anyone. The Mexican superstar barely loses a fight and always seems to be the most significant Pay Per View seller of the year.
Despite those facts that Oscar knows well from his time working with the super middleweight king, De La Hoya continues the bad blood due to their acrimonious split.
Before the fight, De La Hoya said, “I’m the PPV king. The Canelo vs. Edgar Berlanga Jr. fight will not exceed 100,000 homes. Nobody is paying $90 for this snoozefest. I am just speaking the facts, as always.”
After the bout, he added, “I told you so. You should have saved your hard-earned money. My lord, this will be my best clapback on Thursday. See you next week.”
Canelo seemingly had the last laugh after PBC figureheads ran with the numbers ahead of another huge event in May 2025. If the Russian comes through Artur Beterbiev in October, Canelo is considering a rematch with Dmitry Bivol.
Bivol would then hold all the titles at light-heavyweight, allowing Canelo to become a two-weight undisputed king.
Read all articles and exclusive interviews by Phil Jay. Learn more about the author, experienced boxing writer, and World Boxing News Editor since 2010. Follow on Twitter @PhilJWBN.
