Canelo Alvarez Takes Crawford for An Easy Payday at 168
The talk continues among the boxing community about the likelihood of a fight between unified super middleweight champion Saul “Canelo” Alvarez (61-2-2, 39 KOs) and newly crowned WBA junior middleweight belt-holder Terence “Bud” Crawford (41-0, 31 KOs). If it were to occur, Alvarez believes he would win convincingly.
Alvarez was a guest on the Sway’s Universe radio show as he’s making the media rounds for his September 14 title defense against Edgar Berlanga. Despite Canelo’s upcoming battle, there’s no escaping talk about Bud.
When Crawford’s name came up during this interview, Alvarez emphasized that he would fight Crawford, but only if the money was right. As far as Canelo is concerned, size matters. Due to that reality, the current king of 168 thinks he would easily handle the junior middleweight champion.
“Crawford, Don’t get me wrong, he’s a great fighter. But for me, in my weight class, it’s an easy fight. It’s easy money.”
“I saw Crawford in the last fight, and he don’t move that much now . . . There are weight classes for a reason. I know, in his mind, he thinks he can do whatever he wants because he’s a very talented fighter. He’s a very good fighter. I like how he fights. But that’s why there are weight classes, and he knows now.”
TOO BIG AND TOO STRONG?
The fight that Alvarez refers to is Crawford’s debut at 154 on August 4 – a unanimous decision victory over Israil Madrimov to win the WBA crown. Crawford received a fair share of backlash for his performance on social media and boxing message boards. The main critique is that in the aftermath of the win over Madrimov, Bud would not do well in a fight with Canelo at 168.
It’s not a secret that Alvarez doesn’t like fighting someone who can move. He thinks that the 36-year-old Crawford has slowed down as he’s gone up in weight, and he would use his size and punching power to break down and overpower Crawford.
However, one can easily be guilty of being reactionary and a prisoner of the moment. Styles make fights. Bud is a legit great fighter with a brilliant ring IQ. Just because Crawford had difficult spots against Madrimov does not mean he could not beat Alvarez.
Alvarez must first and foremost take care of business against Berlanga on September 14. With influences like Turki Alalshikh working behind the scenes, Alvarez versus Crawford could occur as early as the first quarter of 2025. If it does, Canelo would get to prove once and for all that Crawford is not in his league.
Be the first to comment