Terence Crawford Says Retirement Will Come Sooner Than Later
Terence “Bud” Crawford (40-0, 31 KOs) has become the darling of the boxing world. But despite the newfound attention, the pride of Ohama, Nebraska is keeping things in perspective and making it clear that folks better appreciate him now because he doesn’t plan on fighting for too much longer.
Crawford is less than a week removed from his ninth-round stoppage over then-unified champion Errol Spence on July 29 in Las Vegas, Nevada to become the undisputed welterweight champion. It was the most highly anticipated fight of 2023, so far.
The victory has skyrocketed the popularity of Crawford, who put on arguably the finest performance of his career. So dominant was he in his win over Spence that fans have speculated about how long he can keep things going.
NOT GOING TO HANG AROUND
Speaking to TMZ Live, Bud was asked if there’s any desire to match the 50-0 record of Hall of Famer Floyd “Money” Mayweather. The reigning undisputed welterweight champion said that there’s no way his career is lasting that long. When questioned about how much longer he intends to fight, Crawford said the following about his future:
“I’m about to be 36 years old in September. So, I don’t see myself continuing to box very much longer. I’ve been doing this sport for a very long time now. I always stated that I’m going to retire from boxing before I let boxing retire me.”
“I feel as if I haven’t been fully appreciated in the sport of boxing in my career for some time, and I felt like once I retire and that’s where I get my props, and people see greatness in Terence Crawford if they don’t already see it from (last) Saturday. Yeah, that’s how I carry on all the way to the Hall of Fame.”
Here are a few things that one could gather from his comments. One, Crawford is one of the few elite athletes in sports who understand their mortality. The Spence fight showed that Crawford appears to be fighting better than ever. But age and time are undefeated. Crawford knows himself more than anybody and understands how long he can carry on at such a high level.
RAGE AGAINST THE MACHINE
Secondly, the Nebraska native harbors bitterness and contempt at the sport’s movers, shakers, and power players. For years, a common critique of Crawford from insiders was that he lacked star power. His former promoter, Bob Arum, complained that Bud was not a ticket seller.
As a result of the criticisms, Crawford felt he was unable to secure the big fights and big paydays for most of his career. He proved the skeptics wrong in the showdown with Spence, which was a success at the box office.
In that regard, Crawford’s career and attitude parallel that of former middleweight king Marvelous Marvin Hagler who felt undervalued and resentful of not getting the mainstream accolades and earning big money. It wasn’t until later in his career that Hagler got the big fights with Thomas Hearns and Ray Leonard and became a mainstream star.
Crawford has his moment in the sun now. But he is a fighter looking to walk into the sunset sooner rather than later.
