A fight between WBA junior middleweight champion Israil Madrimov (10-0-1, 7 KOs) and Terence Crawford (40-0, 31 KOs) is in the works for August 3rd in Los Angeles, California.
The card will reportedly be promoted by Matchroom’s Eddie Hearn and it’ll be Saudi official Turki Alalshikh’s first U.S fight card, according to Lance Pugmire of Boxing Scene.
Madrimov is coming off a fifth round knockout of Magomed Kurbanov last March in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. He looked powerful in that fight, nailing Kurbanov with huge shots until he folded in the fifth round.
Madrimov: A Force to be Reckoned With
If the Crawford-Madrimov fight happens, it’s going to be interesting to see how well Crawford handles taking the hard punches from Madrimov.
No one Crawford has faced during his 16-year professional career has the kind of power that Madrimov possess, and he might be a little too old and inactive to be getting hit that hard at this point.
For Crawford to be taking this kind of fight, he must be getting paid well because it’s a risky one. This isn’t David Avanesuyan or Errol Spence type of fighter. Madrimov is a much bigger puncher, and better both of those guys.
If Crawford loses, his hopes for a fight against Canelo Alvarez will be out the window. Terence may need to move back down to 147 and take the fight with Jaron ‘Boots’ Ennis. That’s the guy that Crawford has shown no interest in fighting for some reason.
Crawford’s Ambitions
Crawford moves up from 147 in search of his fourth division world title against the dangerous puncher Madrimov.
The 36-year-old Crawford had hoped to challenge Tim Tszyu for his WBO 154-lb belt, but him losing to Sebastian ‘The Towering Inferno’ Fundora in an upset decision defeat last March, it foiled Terence’s plans.
This fight is a more difficult one for Crawford on paper than a match against Tszyu, as Madrimov faster, more powerful and has an unorthodox style to him. Crawford can’t count on Madrimov being weight drained or ring-rusty like his last opponent Errol Spence, and he’s not been involved in car crashes or coming into the match with a cataract eye problem.
Crawford might regret taking it. Terence wants to fight Canelo Alvarez, but he’s not moved up to 168 to put himself in a position for that to happen. Fighting Madrimov won’t help Crawford get the Canelo fight because he’d still be two weight classes away, and he would still need to move up to 168 and beat someone credible.