Canelo Alvarez says he’s concerned about not receiving credit if he were to fight Terence Crawford, a fighter who competes three divisions below him.
It’s a fight where Crawford could claim a moral victory just by lasting the twelve rounds with Canelo.
Moreover, Crawford could muddy the water by saying the judges robbed him, as some of Canelo’s past opponents have done.
For Canelo to receive any kind of credit from fans, he would need to knock out Crawford, as he did with Amir Khan, and that wouldn’t be easy because Terence is a defensive artist and can be very difficult to hit when he’s on his bike.
This fight would be the equivalent of Crawford defending his undisputed welterweight championship against a super featherweight like Oscar Valdez or Emanuel Navarrete. Those fighters complete three divisions below Crawford.
If Crawford fought one of those guys, fans would rake him over the coals for cherry-picking smaller fighters while ignoring his IBF 147-lb mandatory Jaron ‘Boots’ Ennis, who he has been dismissive of.
On the plus side, the payday that Canelo would receive from fighting Crawford would be massive, but a victory wouldn’t enhance his legacy in the same way as it would if the Mexican star were to beat one of these fighters:
– David Benavidez
– Dmitry Bivol
– David Morrell Jr.
– Artur Beterbiev
It would be a lose-lose situation for Canelo because even if he beats Crawford (40-0, 31 KOs), the credit he would receive would be minimal from fans.
If Canelo (59-2-2, 39 KOs) loses or struggles to beat the 36-year-old welterweight, Crawford, it will hurt his legacy, and he will never hear the end of it from fans. It would essentially mean career-over for Canelo.
There wouldn’t be the built-in excuse for him like there was when he fought WBA light heavyweight champion Dmitry Bivol at 175 last year or when he fought superstar Floyd Mayweether Jr. at age 22.
Manouk Akopyan: “Terence Crawford is open to fighting you at 168 pounds. Is this an intriguing match-up for you? Are you seriously considering this fight if it’s there for the taking for you?”
Canelo Alvarez: “Look, I respect Crawford, he’s a great fighter. Sometimes it’s crazy that people are talking about me fighting a small fighter like Charlo. He’s big.
“Everybody is talking about if I’m going to fight Crawford, a fighter [who competes] at 147, who is smaller than Charlo. I don’t understand. I’m fighting Charlo, who is two weight classes smaller than me, and then you’re talking about Crawford.
“I’m not going to get credit for facing Crawford, but you never know in boxing. It’s possible. Why not?”
Manouk Akopyan: “You’re a business man, Canelo. If it makes sense.
Canelo: “If it makes sense, I’m down.”
