Turki Alalshikh announced on social media on Tuesday that the 12-round bout for Mbilli’s belt will take place on October 31 in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. Canelo-Mbilli, which is being billed as "Mexico vs. The World," will headline a Ring card on DAZN PPV and be available to DAZN Ultimate subscribers.

Alvarez (63-3-2, 39 KOs) and Mbilli (29-0-1, 24 KOs) were originally scheduled to fight on September 12 in Riyadh. A family matter delayed Alvarez’s ability to begin training camp, which led to the fight being postponed.

Mbilli, 31, and Alvarez, 36, both last fought on the same card at Allegiant Stadium in Las Vegas in September 2025. Mbilli, The Ring’s No. 3-rated fighter at 168 pounds, fought to a split draw against Lester Martinez in a back-and-forth 10-round contest. Terence Crawford beat Alvarez, The Ring’s No. 1-ranked super middleweight, by unanimous decision to become the undisputed 168-pound champion.

Crawford retired in December, and shortly after, Mbilli was elevated from interim WBC super middleweight champion to full titleholder. The Cameroonian champion, who trains out of Montreal, Quebec, Canada, won the interim WBC super middleweight title with a first-round stoppage of Maciej Sulecki in June 2025.

Alvarez, of Guadalajara, Jalisco, Mexico, has won world titles in four divisions and has twice been the undisputed super middleweight champion.