Crawford looking past Spence, pushing for Canelo Alvarez fight

By Jeff Sorby - 09/09/2023 - Comments

Terence Crawford is acting like a second victory over Errol Spence Jr. is a forgone conclusion, as he’s on a social media campaign to create interest in a fight between him and undisputed super middleweight champion Canelo Alvarez.

It’s a waste of energy on Crawford’s part to push for a fight against Canelo because the Mexican star isn’t coming down to 158 like he wanted. Also, Canelo isn’t going to open himself up for criticism by defending his undisputed super middleweight championship against a welterweight. 

If Crawford wants to fight Canelo, he can always move up to 168 and beat a few of the top names if he gets past Spence in the rematch.

Crawford needs to focus on what is rather than a dream fight that he doesn’t rate and has no chance of getting against Canelo at 168.

Former unified welterweight champion Spence (28-1, 22 KOs) has activated the rematch clause, and the second fight with Crawford will be held at a higher weight at 154.

If Spence isn’t drained looking like last time, he could punish the 36-year-old Crawford (40-0, 31 KOs) and make him show his age like many had expected him to do last July. No one thought that Spence would lose 50 lbs in training camp and come in looking like Skeletor at the weigh-in.

What Crawford has going for him in the rematch with Spence is that he gets to choose the weight for the fight, which means the contest will take place a 154 rather than 160 or 168, which is probably where Errol should be fighting.

“We knew this was a 50-50 fight, but obviously, it didn’t show as much. One thing we did know is that even from a standpoint from preparation, it’s 50-50,” said Shawn Porter to K.O. Artist Sports about the Terence Crawford vs. Errol Spence Jr. fight.

“Who trains the best, who game plans the best, and who has the best corner? Ultimately, I think it came down to Terence seeing what he saw. Terence showed that he saw something, and he was able to connect the dots and solve the puzzle.

“That was a hell of a puzzle. Errol Spence has always been a hell of a puzzle to get with. I hate that people are saying that Errol isn’t what we thought he was. He is. That guy [Crawford] was just greater that night.

“If you remove emotion, you do see that was his first loss. Yes, it was a loss. The physicians need to make the decision whether he’s healthy enough to continue.

“Don’t completely write him off because you’ve seen him in a space that you did not expect to see him in. You saw him in a space that you never saw him in before.

“A lot of people don’t want to see the [Crawford vs. Spence] rematch. I’m an advocate for rematches. There were maybe two fighters as an amateur that beat me, like consecutively. But I was one of those guys if you beat me once, you couldn’t beat me twice.

“I saw it, I felt it, I tasted it. I made my mental adjustments. I came back, and I was somebody different, and that’s what I truly expect from Errol Spence. So, with that being said, I’m an advocate for a rematch,” said Porter.

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