CANELO ALVAREZ had to reassure even his youngest daughter that Jake Paul is no match for him.
The Mexican boxing great was in line to face YouTuber-turned-boxer Paul on May 3 in Las Vegas.
The deal eventually came to a dramatic collapse – but the shock mega-fight was the talk of playground for Canelo's youngest daughter Mia.
Canelo told SunSport in an exclusive interview: “Maybe her friends told her about the fight.
“Because the fathers of her friends told them and everything talking about it – because they don't know anything about boxing.
“That kind of people don't know anything about boxing and they think Jake Paul is really good fighter. Which he is a fighter, but it's levels in boxing.
“And that's why my daughter told me, ‘You're gonna fight with Jake Paul?' And I said, ‘He's not on my level my love, don't worry!'
“I think it's for that fact that people don't how boxing works.”
Paul, 28, was closing in on a blockbuster deal to face Canelo, 34, in a 200lb cruiserweight clash the the T-Mobile Arena.
But Canelowalked away at the 11th hour to instead sign a bumper four-bout deal with Saudi Arabia's Turki Alalshikh.
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He now returns on May 4 in Riyadh – his first fight outside of Mexico or America – in a super-middleweight undisputed decider against William Scull.
And a super-fight against Terence Crawford, 37, is then due to follow in September.
Canelo faced losing out the Crawford bout had he proceeded with the spectacle showdown against Paul – leaving him with no regrets.
He said: “I'm very happy. Things happen for a reason and I'm happy with this and I'm gonna enjoy it as much as I can.”
Paul has 11 wins and just one loss as a boxer – coming via split-decision against Tommy Fury in 2023.
And he most recently caused controversy after bringing Mike Tyson out of retirement at the age of 58.
But still a sensational 100 MILLION tuned in to watch the American's eight-round points win on Netflix.
So Canelo has not completely closed the door on Paul – although he struggles to even refer to it as a fight.
He said: “Calling it a fight is very difficult for me, man. It's for me more like event more than a fight and this is not the moment.”
