Boxing
Dream to reality: Canelo and Crawford are getting closer
At first it seemed like a pipe dream. It sounds absurd at first glance, and when you look closer, it becomes only a little less absurd.
This usually happens until Turki Alalshikh enters the fight, revealing his interest in the fight and then committing half of the amount to his own promotion (August 3, when Riyad Season packs his bags and moves to Los Angeles). Then suddenly, as financial obstacles crumble like sandcastles on a rising tide, everything becomes astonishingly possible, even plausible.
Terence Crawford, who weighed 137 pounds in his professional debut in 2008; a fight against Canelo, who weighed 139 pounds in his own professional debut in 2005.
They flourished and grew over the years, increasing in size and importance. In some strange universe, the timelines may overlap, but Crawford now fills in like the man he’s about to face.
Both are technically still undisputed champions. I almost cling to some belts while the shiny skin is mercilessly stripped from my waist by sanctioning bodies who want their pawned cutlery back on the shop window and available to lesser beings.
After defeating Errol Spence Jr. and thus completing his undisputed conquest of the welterweight division, Crawford sat merrily over the titles, assessing his future options – until now.
Since it was announced that he would face WBA super welterweight champion Israil Madrimov at BMO Stadium, the 147-pounders have been excitedly running around below deck, waiting to pick up Crawford’s crumbs.
Jaron Ennis has already familiarized himself with the IBF version. Brian Norman Jr and Giovani Santillan fought for the WBO interim while Crawford made the decision on that, as well as the WBC crown.
Saul “Canelo” Alvarez with his belts after his September 17 victory over Gennady Golovkin in a trilogy fight (FREDERIC J. BROWN/AFP via Getty Images)
To add to the tangled web that has enveloped both Crawford and Canelo, Mario Barrios defeated Fabian Maidana to win the interim WBC welterweight title on Canelo’s recent undercard. Eimantas Stanionis, who defeated Gabriel Maestre on the same card, holds a version of the WBA belt(s).
And speaking of Canelo, he’s going about his undisputed business. On May 4, Stanionis and Barrios were joined by a man named William Scull. The Germany-based Cuban defeated Sean Hemphill over eight rounds in a sweetener, while Scull moved forward to claim Canelo’s IBF belt.
Even though Scull isn’t exactly a sexy name, he deserved his chance and the IBF ordered Canelo’s people and Scull’s people to put their heads together and make a fight deal.
To the surprise of no one, Canelo was reportedly close to vacating the title, leaving Scull free to fight the next available challenger (Vladimir Shishkin) and effectively ending Canelo’s reign as the undisputed super middleweight king.
This would reopen the possibility of a future clash with Crawford if “Bud” managed to pass Madrimov unscathed. It was all very neat and tidy until Canelo revealed that he hadn’t made a decision yet and might consider fighting Scull after all.
Like a magnet in the middle, pulling Canelo down and Crawford up, Amir Khan was the target of every fighter’s ire. Amir had barely had time to try to make his name in the Las Vegas lights when Canelo turned the lights off in 2016.
The loss to Crawford in 2019 was a bit more nuanced, with Amir struggling to make a mark in the competition before a low blow found him unable to continue, handing the victory to Crawford in quite unsatisfying fashion. Amir had been around long enough to know exactly what the Nebraskan brought to the table. Even with this insider knowledge, taking Canelo’s bombs is a completely different matter.
Amir Khan boxed Terence Crawford in his last Action Images/Andrew Couldridge fight
“I wouldn’t want Crawford to get into a fight like that because at the end of the day, the guy is the best pound-for-pound fighter in the world. He’s an amazing fighter. Why him [Crawford] do you have to lose so many kilos? And I know what it’s like to give up such a bulky burden. It’s not worth it,” Khan warned.
Referring to Crawford’s achievements, his family and the fact that he, like Canelo, is getting older, Khan seemed reluctant to endorse the weight jump. That said, the financial incentives for a man who has spent his career fighting for money and respect may be too great to turn down.
“If he makes a lot of money, why not? When I fought him, I was paid around 10 million. I thought to myself that I might as well, because the way I looked at it was that I was fighting a bigger guy and yes, there was a lot of risk involved, but at the same time it was more risk than I would normally take. fight three or four times to earn that kind of money.
“It’s three tough training camps. That’s taking punches three times as punishment. That’s three times the amount of being away from family and children. You know, it’s complex,” Khan added, weighing the pros and cons .
“So maybe just do it for that one massive payday and be done with it. Which I don’t blame him for either. But as I said, you have to respect the weight classes.
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