Canelo Alvarez could have “influenced” the referee to take a point off Christian Mbilli during their world title fight, claims Mbilli’s promoter Camille Estephan.
Canelo beat Mbilli by unanimous decision in Riyadh on Saturday to reclaim the WBC world super-middleweight title with scores of 115-112, 116-111 and 117-110 in the Mexican superstar’s favour.
But in the eighth round, Mbilli’s hopes of a late charge were stalled when referee Hector Afu docked a point for hitting on the back of the head after Canelo gestured to the official following an exchange on the ropes.
Christian Mbilli lost out to Canelo Alvarez in their WBC super-middleweight title clash in Riyadh
“Close fight, hats off to Canelo – a great performance,” Estephan said.
“As far as the ref, It seemed like he was influenced to take that point off. But I’m not in his shoes. I can’t understand what went through his mind.
“Regardless, there will be many more big fights for Christian. He belongs.”
Terence Crawford stunned Canelo Alvarez in the Mexican’s most recent fight last year
Canelo was returning to boxing a year after his stunning loss to Terence Crawford that cost him his undisputed super-middleweight crown and ended his reign as holder of the division’s four major titles.
Mbilli was elevated to full WBC champion after Crawford’s departure from the division, having previously held the interim title with his victory over Maciej Sulecki in June 2025.
Christian Mbilli beat Maciej Sulecki in June 2025 to claim the WBC interim title
The 31-year-old Cameroon-born boxer had fought to a split draw against Lester Martinez on the undercard of the Alvarez-Crawford showdown, ending a run of 29 consecutive professional victories, while the loss now to Cancelo is his first as a professional.
In a post on Instagram, translated from French, Mbilli wrote: “Last night didn’t go the way I wanted. I’ll learn from this experience, get back in the gym, and come back stronger.
“Thank you to my team and to all of you for your messages of support.”