Canelo's Riyadh Title Fight Goes Ahead Despite Deadly Airport Attacks, Says Alalshikh

Saul "Canelo" Alvarez will still fight Christian Mbilli for the world title in Riyadh on October 31, despite deadly attacks on the Saudi capital's international airport this weekend. Turki Alalshikh, chairman of Saudi Arabia's General Entertainment Authority, said Sunday that Canelo reached out personally to confirm he is not pulling out of the bout. "Canelo reached out and told me he'll still fight in Riyadh this October, no matter what happens. He fears nothing," Alalshikh posted on social media. The announcement follows a strike on Riyadh's international airport on Saturday that killed at least 12 people and wounded more than 300 — the deadliest attack in the kingdom in more than a decade, claimed by Yemen's Iran-aligned Houthi movement. On Sunday, one more person was killed and nearly a dozen hurt in a second attack on the airport, the venue near where Alvarez and WBC super-middleweight champion Mbilli are scheduled to clash. Alvarez, a former two-time undisputed super-middleweight champion, has not fought since he was beaten by Terence Crawford in September 2025. His representatives did not immediately respond to a request for comment outside business hours in Mexico. The decision to press ahead sets up one of boxing's biggest nights of the year under extraordinary circumstances, with the sport's biggest star betting that the show — and the city — can go on.