Keith Thurman Says Bob Arum Fabricated His $10 Million Dollar Ask
Former unified welterweight champion Keith “One Time” Thurman (29-1, 22ko) is ready to make a comeback by fighting former WBA “regular” junior welterweight champion Mario Barrios on February 5. However, One Time took a moment to address Bob Arum’s claim that he asked for ten million dollars to fight WBO champion Terence “Bud” Crawford.
Thurman was on top of the world as the unified champion until injuries, a defeat to Hall of Famer Manny “Pac Man” Pacquiao, and the COVID-19 pandemic all contributed to his frequent inactivity. The former unified champion is ready to have a breakout return to the ring, starting with the Barrios fight.
However, Thurman still holds a grudge against Arum for misleading the public about his purse demand. In 2021, he went Chernobyl on the Top Rank boss for trying to lowball him when trying to fight with Bud.
“Look man, I’m about to snap on Bob real quick! Bob, you a piece of shit! You are one of the worst promoters in the game […] You know I never ask for anything, it’s not my fault you can’t afford a great fight!”
NEVER ASK FOR TEN MILLION
The narrative floating around as to why the fight with Crawford never happened was One Time asked for $10 million. Fans inside the boxing community accused the former champion of overpricing himself. Thurman set the record straight during an interview on The Last Stand podcast by claiming the narrative was fabricated by Arum.
“False lies. Bob Arum is a notorious liar, and how do I know? Because we never asked for anything! Okay, we don’t put a number out in negotiations. You see what number they bring to you at the table.”
“I should have said ten million because his number was so low, I gotta bring it up somehow. You know what I mean, I should have said 20 million just to piss him off! But, we don’t say numbers. We don’t like to say numbers. So, I never gave him a verbal statement”
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By: Garrisson Bland
