Alvarez stops Bute in fifth to become mandatory WBC light heavyweight challenger

QUEBEC — Eleider Alvarez dropped former champion Lucian Bute with a pair of right-hand shots in the fifth round to win a light heavyweight elimination bout between the two Montreal-based boxers on Friday night.

Alvarez (22-0), stunned Bute (32-4-1) with a right and then sent him to the floor with another to close out what had been an even battle through four rounds. Referee Marlon B. Wright stopped the fight at 2:22 of the fifth round.

“I’ve been practising that move for a long time,” Alvarez said after the bout.

The Colombian-born Alvarez became the mandatory challenger for the WBC title held by another Montreal fighter, Adonis Stevenson.

Bute held the IBF super-middleweight title from 2007 to 2012, when he was crushed in England by Carl Froch. The Romanian-born Canadian was in only his sixth bout since that defeat.

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“That’s boxing,” said Bute. “I thought I fought well but he surprised me with a good punch. Hats off to him, he deserved the win.”

It remains to be seen if it was the last fight for 36-year-old Bute, who is 2-4-1 in his last seven bouts.

Alvarez also retained the obscure WBC Silver title.

In the co-feature, former Edmonton Eskimos defensive end Adam Braidwood (7-1) of Victoria stopped Eric Martel-Bahoeli (11-7-1) of Quebec City in the fifth round to win the heavyweight title from a little-known sanctioning body, the WBU.

Francis Lafreniere (15-5-2) of Coteau du Lac, Que. defeated Uriel Gonzalez (15-2-1) to take two continental middleweight belts.

Also, Christian M’Billi (2-0) stopped Jesus Olivera (5-4) in three rounds.

Frederic Daigle, The Canadian Press