Actress Sofia Vergara had an awkward embrace with boxing superstar Canelo Alvarez at the weekend, before the Mexican’s wife awkwardly stepped into separate the duo.
Alvarez grabbed headlines when he fought Terence Crawford in an undisputed title fight in Las Vegas on Saturday night, but he ultimately came up short as he was beaten on points.
It was an attraction that drew some of America’s most famous stars to watch the fight go down, with other boxing icons and actors among those watching on.
One of those celebrities was Colombian-American actress Vergara, who has made her name by appearing in hits such as Modern Family, America’s Got Talent and Despicable Me 4.
At the Allegiant Stadium, Vergara popped backstage to meet Canelo, who stepped forward from a white sofa draped with a Mexican flag to hug the 53-year-old, with his wife watching on with an awkward smile.
But it was a somewhat awkward moment, with Canelo, 35, seemingly stepping to the side and then donning a nervous look as he put two hands around her.
Canelo Alvarez shared an awkward embrace with Sofia Vergara before his fight with Terence Crawford in Las Vegas that saw his wife step in
Canelo and Gomez met in 2016 and married in 2021, and have been side by side at the Mexican’s fights since
Netflix shared footage of the incident to their official X page, with the video cutting after the hug and immediately cutting to a photo opportunity featuring the two stars.
It was, however, notable that they were not standing next to each other. Instead, Canelo’s wife, Fernanda Gomez had stepped between the duo to make sure they were not side by side for the snap.
Of the four people in the photo, Canelo stood on the right, with his arm around one of his children. In the middle was Gomez, with Vergara posing on the left. Canelo and Gomez met in 2016, marrying in 2021.
Fans were quick to rush to social media to notice the act, with one posting: ‘Canelo wife was NOT PLAYING,’ accompanied by three laughing face emojis.
Another added: ‘Lmaoo his wife made sure to stand between them.’
A third wrote: ‘Canelo eyes stayed straight. His wife had tunnel vision on him.’
Canelo has five children to five different women. Emily Cinnamon Alvarez is the oldest, who he had with childhood sweetheart Karen Beltran. His second daughter, Mia Ener Alvarez, calls model Valeria Quiroz mother.
The mother of his only son, Saul Adiel Alvarez, is Nadia Sepulveda, and he shares two daughters with Gomez – Maria Fernanda Alvarez and Eve Victoria.
Fans took to social media to reference the awkward incident inside the Allegiant Stadium
Of his children watching his matches, Canelo told The Sun: ‘They get a little bit nervous, but they like it. They scream, they support me with all they have.
‘I think Maria is the one with more nervous on herself because she says that she don’t want somebody to hurt me or something like that.
‘And I say, “Don’t worry, that’s why I’m here training and do my doing my best here in training camp so that doesn’t happen”.’
The fighter, meanwhile, was full of praise for his opponent on the back of the unanimous decision defeat at the weekend.
‘I think he’s way better than Floyd Mayweather,’ Alvarez told reporters in Las Vegas of Crawford after the clash.
The Mexican had some success in the early rounds on Saturday, landing chopping shots and combinations, but Crawford’s counters repeatedly picked off those blows.
Even at the start of the ninth, when both men stood toe-to-toe exchanging vicious punches at centre ring, it was the natural welterweight who got the better of it.
By the championship rounds the result looked beyond doubt, with the two 115-113 tallies flattering to the dethroned champion.
Vergara was ringside for one of the biggest fights of all time, but Canelo came up short
The Mexican lost to Crawford on points and said his opponent is better than Floyd Mayweather
Crawford’s unanimous decision win and Canelo’s extraordinary praise afterwards will only intensify calls for him to be recognised as boxing’s pound-for-pound No 1.
As the first man to become undisputed in three divisions, he has already secured a place among the sport’s all-time greats.
