Terence Crawford has cemented himself amongst boxing’s all-time greats with a number of iconic wins and title triumphs. When asked to name his own top five fighters, ‘Bud’ felt three former heavyweight champions have earned their places.

Crawford made history when he dethroned Canelo Alvarez and captured the undisputed super-middleweight world title last September, becoming the first post-war three-weight undisputed titleholder.

Soon after that generational win, the Omaha switch-hitter announced his retirement from the sport, walking away with an astonishing career that consisted of 42 victories and no defeats; considered to be one of the best boxers to have hung up the gloves with an undefeated record.

On The Real Report podcast with Tony Yayo and Uncle MurdaCrawford named only one unbeaten fighter amongst his all-time top five. Instead, the 38-year-old gave props to three former heavyweight world champions: Muhammad Ali, Roy Jones Jr and Joe Louis.

“I got to put [Muhammad] Ali up there. I got to put Sugar Ray Robinson, I got to put Roy Jones Jr. in his prime. I’ve definitely got to put Floyd Mayweather in and I’ll probably put Joe Louis.”

Ali and Louis spent their entire legendary careers competing at heavyweight, while Jones Jr competed in the banner division just once, becoming the first former world middleweight champion to capture world heavyweight gold in over a century.

As for Crawford, despite announcing his decision to retire, he continues to be called out by active fighters, with Ryan Garcia becoming the latest to call for a shot at putting an end to the veteran’s unbeaten streak.

James Dean Fury has always loved boxing, basically since he was born, but it was only when he started training with his uncle, Peter Fury, that he really began to understand the sport.

Given his name, it is hardly surprising that the latest Fury to turn professional has been immersed in boxing for all of his 20 years.

In fact, the super-middleweight prospect tells Boxing News that he struggles to recall a time when he was involved in anything else.

“I’ve been around the sport all my life; was born and bred into it. So my first activity, as a kid, was obviously boxing.

“When I was born, my mum and dad bought me a pair of gloves and a rope – like a little boxing kit for babies – and, when I first walked into the gym, I just fell in love with it. I loved getting punched in the face and punching other people in the face.

“From around seven or eight years old, I knew this was what I wanted to do for a living. I believe God put me on this planet to fight because, when I’m not boxing, there’s nothing else for me to do.”

It is one thing developing a passion for something, like boxing, but learning how to succeed at something is another matter entirely.

Fortunately, James Dean Fury did not have to go searching far and wide for a knowledgeable teacher, yet still he needed to prove worthy of such valuable tutelage.

“When I started training with my uncle Peter at 13 years old, he really opened my eyes and gave me a clear understanding of where I want to go.

“If I sat here and told you everything I’ve learned off my uncle Peter, we’d be here till Christmas.

“But when I was about 14 years old, he tested me. He put me in a trailer [caravan]just to see if I was really dedicated. Then he took me on full-time.”

As a three-time national amateur champion and 2025 Box Cup winner, it is fair to say that James Dean Fury has proved a receptive student.

But now, the young Fury must go one step further and establish himself in the pro ranks, starting with his Boxxer debut on August 8.

Having inked a deal with Ben Shalom’s promotional outfithe will feature on the undercard of Troy Williamson vs Callum Simpson 2, hoping to show fans that he possesses the indigents to win a world title.

“I’ve always been competitive – whether I’m running a race, at a school sports day or playing a board game … I want to win.

“And when it comes to fighting – something I’ve put my whole life into – please, believe me, I will win. I’ve sacrificed everything for this.”

With such competitive spirit, even the attention that comes with his family name does not seem to faze the cousin of a two-time heavyweight champion.

“Whoever you jump in the ring with, they’re going to try and take your head off. No one’s in there to have a dance with me, especially when they hear my name. We’re in the hurt game.”

It might be a cliché, but James Dean clearly does have boxing in his DNA, along with a fierce desire to reach the pinnacle of his sport.

Kristian Prenga came close to knocking out Anthony Joshua and causing a showdown with Tyson Fury to collapse, only to then be stopped himself in round two. Now, the Albanian heavyweight has responded to suspicions that his clash with ‘AJ’ was somehow fixed.

The previously unknown Prenga caught Joshua clean and cold in the opening 20 seconds of their duel in Jeddah, dramatically flooring the two-time unified heavyweight world champion with a sneaky uppercut and then dropping the him for a second time just moments later.

Joshua managed to survive and negate the pressure of Prenga, who looked to be on the verge of a life-changing win.

Yet, in round two, Prenga’s momentum seemed to disintegrate, as the 35-year-old confusingly boxed on the back foot and allowed Joshua to take the centre of the ring, rather than continuing the attempted onslaught that had proved so successful in the opening round.

As a result, Joshua regained his confidence and soon made Prenga pay for his tactical blunder, mercilessly quashing any hopes of a fairytale win with a brutal three-punch combination to close the show.

In response, some fight fans have doubted the legitimacy of Prenga’s mistake and suggested that other forces may have been at play, with TalkSPORT’s Simon Jordan saying on social media that ‘something was not quite right’.

Not having that … #anthonyjoshua fight ..:

Dropped twice and sets the tempo, how’s that ? … Prenga totally different in 2nd

Something not quite right , all designed to rinse maximum amount of money …

— Simon Jordan (@Sjopinion10) July 25, 2026

In response, Kristian Prenga has hit back at the TalkSPORT host, explaining that his decision to slow down in round two was done to preserve his energy, as per SveaCasino.

“Simon Jordan’s fight fix comments are straight stupidity.

“What do I make of Simon Jordan’s comments? Completely false, and irresponsible for anyone to suggest it. AJ and I have integrity, we would never engage in this stupidity.

“I felt I needed to preserve energy and catch my breath, so I thought I would start slow and replenish my energy. Unfortunately, it didn’t happen, and that slower pace allowed AJ to flip control of the fight to him.”

Jordan has since cooled on his comments, saying he has changed his opinion after speaking to some knowledgeable people in the sport.

Joshua is now expected to proceed with a meeting against Fury in November at Madison Square Garden, with an official announcement anticipated imminently. Prenga will have another fight under Eddie Hearn’s Matchroom banner.