Promoter Bob Arum says he is not counting his former fighter Terrence Crawford in a title challenge against WBA/WBC/WBO middleweight champion Canelo Alvarez if they meet next September in a massive 12-round fight.
Threatening to hit the switch
Arum feels Crawford's (37 years old, 39 KOs) ability to switch strikes will trouble Canelo (62-2-2, 39 KOs), just as it did Errol Spence when they fought in 2023. Errol is overpowered against Crawford, looks slow, Exhausted, and nowhere near the fighter he was in 2018.
Crawford's switch to the southpaw on Canelo likely won't confuse the Mexican star as he has fought many left-handed fighters and has never had any problems with them. If Bud switches to South Foot, it will not affect the fight other than him landing heavy strikes while in a different stance.
The real problem that Arum doesn't mention is that Crawford is too old, undersized, and weak to fight at 168 years old. He is likely hoping to put on 14 pounds and repeat what Floyd Mayweather Jr. did against the 22-year-old Canelo. In 2013.
This is ridiculous because if this version of Mayweather fought Canelo now, he would be fired. Alvarez is now much stronger and more experienced, and will never agree to a weight limit of 152 pounds.
“I wouldn't rule Crawford out of any fight because he has a unique talent. He's a great boxer, and he's absolutely skilled,” Bob Arum said. Fighthype When asked about Terence Crawford's chances against Canelo Alvarez.
“He drives his opponent crazy because he trains to fight a right-handed fighter, and he ends up fighting a southpaw fighter. That's what happened to Errol (when he fought Crawford on June 29, 2023). Spence trained to fight right-handed and all he saw was a southpaw fighter.
“I think what Crawford is looking for is Manny Pacquiao versus Oscar De La Hoya,” Arum said about the type of upset situation Terrence is looking for against Canelo.
No weight
The situation was different when Oscar De La Hoya faced Manny Pacquiao in 2008. De La Hoya was a part-time boxer at that point in his career, fighting at junior middleweight. He agreed to fight Pacquiao at 145 and then shed the extra weight by dieting. He looked terrible, putting on weight, and it showed in the fight.
Canelo won't diet or cut weight for Crawford, and he's not a part-time fighter like Oscar. If Crawford thinks Canelo will be another De La Hoya, he's kidding himself. They are two different people.
Canelo remains in good shape, and won't agree to give Bud a weight handicap like De La Hoya did to Pacquiao. Oscar never had to do that because he was the “golden boy,” the big star in that fight, and he could have insisted that Pacquiao move up to 154 to fight him. This was a strange situation as De La Hoya leaned back to give Mane an even better chance down the field. Thus, he weakened himself and lost.
