Edgar Berlanga knows he's a big underdog entering his fight against unified super middleweight world champion Canelo Alvarez on September 14, live on DAZN.
But while Alvarez has noted Berlanga's punching power, the undefeated Brooklyn, New York fighter believes the boxing legend is disregarding his ring IQ and therefore not taking him as seriously as he should.
In speaking with Marcos Villegas from Fight Hub TV recently, Berlanga pinpointed the exact moment from their Los Angeles press conference last week that made him realize that Alvarez is "sleeping" on him as an opponent.
The moment, in Berlanga's estimation, came when Berlanga and Caleb Plant, who was sitting in the audience, exchanged verbal jabs and Alvarez offered: "Caleb, take it easy, I'm going to take care of him for you. I promise you. That's for you, buddy. You think he has more IQ than you?
"You don't have a better IQ than me," Alvarez then told Berlanga directly. "You think you have more IQ than Floyd Mayweather? Miguel Cotto? Than [Erislandy] Lara? Come on, bro! You're nothing. Take it easy and wait because your turn is coming."
To that, Berlanga told Fight Hub TV: "He said that and I said, 'you're gonna see.' But that's why I love it because this is where the doubt ... I know he's sleeping on me. Just by him saying that, you're sleeping on me, homie! He's sleeping on me! And that's the best part.
"It's cool, it's cool because I'm gonna embrace all of that," Berlanga tacked on. "He's gonna respect my game that night for sure, 100 percent."
Live on DAZN : Check your region for PFL and PFL Europe on DAZN . Click here for details.