Terence Crawford told the media today that Canelo Alvarez’s use of Jaron ‘Boots’ Ennis as one of his sparring partners for their September 13th fight shows that he’s taken him “seriously.
Crawford says that if he were too small and had never fought anyone good, Canelo (63-2-2, 39 KOs) wouldn’t be going to these lengths of hiring former WBA and IBF welterweight champion Ennis as a sparring partner.
Canelo will be defending his undisputed super middleweight title against the 37-year-old Crawford (41-0, 31 KOs), who will be moving up from 154 after just one fight in that weight class to make his debut at 168. The event will be at the Allegiant Stadium in Las Vegas. Netflix is the broadcast platform for the event.
Crawford’s Confidence Is Soaring
“What is there to talk about. You’re fighting the best fighter in the world. You better be taking it seriously,” said Terence Crawford to the media when asked about his thoughts on Canelo Alvarez using middleweight contender Yoenli Hernandez and Jaron ‘Boots’ Ennis as sparring partners to prepare for his fight against him on September 13th.
Crawford’s last fight against Israil Madrimov showed that he’s not “the best fighter in the world on August 3, 2024. He won a narrow 12-round unanimous decision over Madrimov by the scores 115-113, 116-112, and 115-113. Fans believe there are better fighters at 154 than Madrimov. Vergil Ortiz Jr. beat him more convincingly than Crawford did earlier this year on February 22nd in Riyadh.
“That goes to show how serious he’s taking me and how much he respects me. If I hadn’t fought anyone, if I were too small, if I were all these things that the media says I was, then he wouldn’t need all these guys to help prepare him to fight me. He wouldn’t need all the help that he’s getting,” said Crawford, reacting to Canelo using Ennis and Hernandez as two of his sparring partners.
Strategic Move by Alvarez
With Canelo fighting a smaller fighter that changes stances, he had to find smaller fighters than the normal super middleweights he faces. So, the logical choices were former unified two-belt welterweight champion Ennis and middleweight Hernandez. Both of them are ambidextrous and can change stances easily. This is what Canelo needed. He wasn’t going to get a super middleweight to help with sparring. It wasn’t about Alvarez choosing these fighters because he was in awe of Crawford. This was more about necessity.
“I’m happy that he’s getting all the help that he needs because after September 13th, there will be no excuses,” said Crawford.
Terence is leaving out the possibility of him losing. It could happen. If Canelo wins, hopefully, there will be no excuses on Crawford’s or his trainer, Brian ‘BoMac’ McIntyre’s, side. Crawford hasn’t revealed who his sparring partners are for this fight. Canelo has been open about who he’s training with, choosing to pose for photos with Hernandez and Boots Ennis.
A Win-Win for Crawford
It’s a no-lose situation for Crawford, as he’s getting a big payday for this fight of a reported $50 million. If he loses, he’ll be given a pass from fans due to his moving up two weight classes from 154 to 168 to challenge Canelo for his undisputed super middleweight championship.
It’s the perfect situation for Crawford. He obviously still won’t be happy losing for the first time, but the writing was already on the wall from his last fight against Israil Madrimov on August 3, 2024. He won that fight by a 12-round unanimous decision, but it was close, and many fans felt that Madrimov deserved the win. Crawford has been inactive for the last year since that fight.