Actress Sofia Vergara found herself in an awkward encounter with boxing superstar Canelo Alvarez over the weekend, as the Mexican fighter’s wife intervened to separate them.

Alvarez attracted significant attention with his fight against Terence Crawford in an undisputed title match in Las Vegas on Saturday night. However, he ultimately lost as the judges ruled against him on points.

The event was a magnet for some of America’s most famous personalities, including both boxing legends and actors who turned up to witness the spectacle.

Backstage at the Allegiant Stadium, Vergara approached Canelo, who came forward from a white sofa festooned with a Mexican flag to embrace the 53-year-old, while his wife observed the interaction 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 captured the moment and posted it on their official X page, showing the footage of the hug before cutting to a staged photo opportunity featuring Canelo and Vergara.

Interestingly, they were not positioned directly next to each other in the photo, as Canelo’s wife, Fernanda Gomez, had placed herself between them to ensure they weren’t side by side for the picture.

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.