WBO orders Terence Crawford versus Shawn Porter welterweight showdown
In an unexpected move, the WBO has just done former welterweight champion Shawn “Showtime” Porter (31-3-1, 17 KO’s) a tremendous favor. The sanctioning body accomplished this by ordering a fight between Porter and WBO World welterweight champion Terence “Bud” Crawford (37-0, 28 KO’s). The two teams have thirty days to successfully negotiate a fight. If not, the bout will go to purse bid. This will come as very warmly welcomed news to the boxing public who have been going slightly mad waiting for Bud to duel marquee opposition.
ABOUT TIME!
Like the boxing fans, Porter also wanted Crawford to face a higher level athlete. Unlike the fans though, Showtime wanted to get in the ring to duke it out with the WBO champ himself. The Ohio native has been publicly calling for the fight for months. Yet, more frustrating than not getting the fight was not knowing why. With this latest announcement however, that past frustration is all water under the bridge.
It would appear that Porter was the beneficiary of Vergil Ortiz Jr’s upcoming dustup. Ortiz is ranked #1 (WBO) while Porter is ranked #2. However, Ortiz is already scheduled to face Egidijus Kavaliauskas on August 14. With Ortiz tied up, it appears that the WBO simply moved to the next available contender. Let’s keep our fingers crossed and hope this bout does come to fruition. Regardless of who prevails, Crawford versus Porter has all the standard requirements for an instant classic. It would be a shame if some backroom trickery foiled such an intriguing battle.
By: Bakari Simpson
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