Terence Crawford showed off his new bulked-up physique in a photo on Instagram today, displaying what he’s going to resemble when he challenges Canelo Alvarez for his undisputed super middleweight championship on September 13th.
Crawford (41-0, 31 KOs) appears to have been bodybuilding rather than training for boxing. That could be a mistake because he’s going to have to carry around all the additional mass that he’s packed onto his body in the last 13 months when he faces Canelo (63-2-2, 39 KOs).
Will Weight Slow Crawford Down?
The extra weight could cause Crawford, 37, to tire out in the later rounds or possibly earlier than that. He was already looking big for his last fight against Israil Madrimov on August 3, 2024.
What was noticeable about that fight is that even though Crawford was bigger, he seemed overly cautious and hesitant about throwing, for fear of being countered by Madrimov. If he was worried about his power, it’s going to be much worse against Canelo because he hits harder than Madrimov. He won’t just throw right hands.
“He’s a guy that can easily put on the muscle and use his hand speed to box,” said 360 Promotions boss Tom Loeffler to Fighthype, discussing the bulk that Terence Crawford has put on for his fight against Canelo Alvarez.
Crawford looking JACKED at 168. Man, he’s put on muscle for sure. Will be interesting to see:
• If his speed is affected – I felt that was a HUGE advantage in this fight
• If he’s able to push Canelo back – Punches will get Alvarez respect; Crawford is freaky strong – has… pic.twitter.com/B7IE3PuxGq
— Marcos Villegas (@heyitsmarcosv) September 5, 2025
Canelo’s Body Shot Advantage
“If Canelo can impose his will and throw some body shots, I can see him edging out a win on that night. His body punching,” said Loeffler, about what Canelo has that Crawford must worry about. “Either counter punch to the head, or he has some great left hooks to the body that are effective. So, he can easily wear you down. I think that’s what Crawford has to look out for. Those tricky bodyshots that Canelo throws.”
The left hooks to the body that Canelo throws could be devastating for Crawford, as he’s not fought body-punchers in years. The last good body puncher Crawford fought was Jose Benavidez Jr. on October 13, 2018. That was a long time ago, and he wasn’t on the level of Canelo.
“Canelo has never been knocked out, but against Terence Crawford, he’ll win. One way or another,” said super middleweight contender Lester Martinez to Fight Hub TV, predicting a victory for Crawford.