Terence Crawford plans move to welterweight: There is only going to be one name

08/22/201708/21/2017 James Slater

Terence Crawford just keeps getting better and better. The brand new unified, WBC/WBO/IBF/WBA super-lightweight ruler was expected to defeat Julius Indongo, but not too many people predicted a quick, brutal 3rd round KO win for him. Most had last night’s fight down as either a distance fight or at least one that would go into the later rounds.

Crawford knew though. He had gone on record, his team and himself, saying before the fight that he would score a KO, and that he did, with one of the best body punch finishes you’ll see all year. The scary part, though, is this – Crawford, at age 29, is not yet at his peak. How much better, or greater, can the two-weight champ become?

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60 years ago today: Another fighter having his pro debut met a guy named Floyd in a much derided “mismatch”

08/21/201708/21/2017 James Slater

There will be no world title on the line on Saturday night when Conor McGregor, making his boxing pro debut, will climb into the ring to face huge betting favourite and common sense favourite, Floyd Mayweather Junior. However, there once was a fight, perhaps more derided and ridiculed than the upcoming bout, that saw a man make his pro debut AND challenge for a world title at the same time.

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Bryant Jennings returns to winning ways, wants shot at Joseph Parker

08/20/2017 James Slater

While British heavyweight Dillian Whyte used his under-card appearance and win on the Crawford-Indongo card as a showcase to call out WBC heavyweight ruler Deontay Wilder, Philadelphia’s Bryant Jennings used his under-card win, over Daniel Martz, as a way to call out reigning WBO champ Joseph Parker.

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Dillian Whyte’s body punches too much for Malcolm Tann; Whyte says they’d be too much for Deontay Wilder!

08/20/2017 James Slater

There was plenty of fine body punching on display in Nebraska last night, as Terence Crawford crushed Julius Indongo with a wicked body shot in the evening’s main event, and as heavyweight Dillian Whyte showed his body shot handiwork on the under-card.

Boxing his US debut, the British heavyweight was, as expected, too much for journeyman late replacement (for original foe Michael Grant) opponent Malcolm Tann. Whyte, beaten only by Anthony Joshua at pro level, stopped Tann in the 3rd round, sending him down a total of four times along the way. And after his easy yet quite impressive win, Whyte predicted how WBC heavyweight king Deontay Wilder “will fall after three or four rounds” if he agrees to face him any time soon.

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On this day in 2000: Naseem Hamed gave us his final thrilling victory

08/22/201708/19/2017 James Slater

On this day 17 years ago, Britain’s Naseem Hamed, the hardest puncher in featherweight boxing history, scored his final thrilling, memorable ring victory. Facing former amateur standout Augie Sanchez in Mashantucket in a fight that went out on HBO, Hamed scored a brutal KO win in defence of his WBO crown.

The fight, after a relatively uneventful opening round (uneventful compared to the sheer street-fighting element that was to come) became a sensational slugfest, with a ton of leather thrown from both sides, trips to the canvas from both fighters that could so easily have been scored as legit knockdowns, blood and finally a savage KO. Indeed, the action that came thick and fast over four rounds was all but impossible to keep up with.

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Anthony Joshua admits to “massive” disappointment over Klitschko’s decision to retire

08/20/201708/19/2017 James Slater

Anthony Joshua wanted to do it again, and he hoped Wladimir Klitschko would, too. But, instead of taking the rematch he could have had with Joshua, 41 year old Klitschko decided instead to call it a career and retire from the ring.

The April fight the two giants gave us provided the heavyweight division with one massive buzz, the knockdown-filled Wembley fight full of action and switches in momentum. However, a sequel was not to be. AJ, now looking ahead to a mandatory title defence against Kubrat Pulev and then one against Luis Ortiz, admits he suffered “massive” disappointment over the news that Wladimir opted to call it quits instead of agreeing to rumble with him a second time.

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Win or lose tonight, will Terence Crawford move up to welterweight next?

08/19/2017 James Slater

Terence Crawford, who has already won a world title at lightweight, has spent two years and four months of his impressive career fighting at super-lightweight; winning the WBO belt in April of 2015 and adding the WBC crown to his collection in July of 2016. Tonight, should Crawford do as most fans and experts predict, and beat Julius Indongo, he will hold all four major belts at 140.

The question, even if the answer seems to be an obvious one, is will Crawford move up to welterweight after tonight’s fight – win or lose? Most people feel he will win, so assuming he does, will Crawford, 31-0(22) choose to vacate the four belts he spent just under two-and-a-half years collecting and jump right up to 147 in his next fight?

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Dillian Whyte the latest boxer to express serious interest in switching to MMA

08/19/2017 James Slater

If you haven’t noticed (and which rock were you hiding under if you haven’t noticed!) more and more boxers are looking to test themselves against MMA fighters and vice-versa. Amidst all the hype and build-up surrounding August 26th’s “Super Fight” between boxing great Floyd Mayweather and MMA star Conor McGregor, more names from both disciplines are talking about switching sports.

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November 12 pencilled in for Horn vs Pacquiao II

08/18/2017 James Slater

The eagerly awaited return fight between welterweights Jeff Horn and Manny Pacquiao is “almost there,” according to Top Rank boss Bob Arum. Ever since the July 2 win scored by big underdog Horn, fight fans, and Pacquiao and Horn himself have wanted the rematch.

Horn wants it to prove his upset decision win, derided by many as a bad decision, was no fluke. Pac Man wants it because he wants revenge. The fans want it because the first fight was so good. Now Arum says all signs point to November 12, once again in Brisbane, Australia (Arum had earlier said it would simply be too hot to fight in Australia at this time of year, but there are plans for a canopy to be put in place which will protect both the ring and the first ten rows of seats from the blistering heat).

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Is Terence Crawford the pound-for-pound best today if he beats Julius Indongo?

08/19/201708/18/2017 James Slater

It’s an interesting fight that has attracted far less attention than should almost certainly be the case (due in large part to the quite incredible amount of press a certain fight set for August 26 has generated) – and tomorrow night’s 140 pound unification clash between Terence Crawford and Julius Indongo will see a new pound-for-pound ruler crowned.

This is the opion of Crawford anyway. Speaking with the media at yesterday’s final press conference before the big fight, Crawford said he “must” be looked at as the best boxer in the world pound-for-pound after he beats Indongo and adds his two belts to the two he already has in his possession. Crawford said there will be “no discussion” on the subject of who the pound-for-pound best is after he has dealt with the tall and dangerous Indongo; and of course, “Bud” is ultra confident he will pick up the win tomorrow.

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