Anthony Joshua has made it clear that his stablemate, Errol Spence Jr, can bounce back from a punishing loss at the hands of Terence Crawford.
The two welterweight champions faced off after years of failed talks, with ‘Bud’ Crawford flipping the script of a pick ’em fight into a one-sided performance that gained him undisputed status and, in the eyes of many, the crown of best fighter in the world.
Spence has a rematch clause to activate, and said he intends to do so at the post-fight press conference. It’s something some pundits have advised him against given the nature of the ninth round stoppage loss.
Joshua – who this year joined the World Class Gym in Texas where Spence trains – told FightHype that there was more to come from Spence.
“That’s not the Errol we know, and I know he’ll be back better. I rate Terence Crawford, before the fight. Bud is an elite fighter.
So is Errol. I know that wasn’t the guy that I watched many time before. I didn’t see everything in training camp because we train at different times, but I did see him working hard.
From a performance point of view, I think they should have confidence in themselves in the rematch if they get whatever happened in the training camp that was going wrong, if they get it right I think they’ll be able to give Bud a much tougher fight.”
The two-time heavyweight world champion then dismissed calls for his campmate to retire.
“Errol didn’t land on his back. He wasn’t knocked out on his back, he got stopped on his feet. So run it back. Let’s go again. I think they should definitely go again. I don’t think he should retire.”
Crawford believes that a rematch could land towards the end of the year, and that it may take place at 154lbs as per Spence’s request.