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Elite Terence Crawford Drops Errol Spence Three Times And Stops Him To Become Undisputed

Written by Kerr Ferguson on 30th July 2023.

Terence Crawford and Errol Spence Jr Highlights

Fans at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas witnessed a genuinely elite performance from Terence Crawford, who broke Errol Spence Jr down and stopped him in the ninth to become undisputed welterweight champion.

Both men entered the ring undefeated, Spence the WBA, WBC and IBF champion, Crawford the WBO. It was a fight a long time coming that split the boxing world down the middle.

All of the pros and cons for each man, the years of debate, the questions about size, speed and age, did nothing to stop Crawford establishing himself and controlling the fight comfortably for the large majority. He was, in short, on a different level.

Crawford – coming out southpaw – started slower, as predicted, but both were certainly just settling into the occasion and getting the read of the man they have sought for so long to fight.

Spence continued to push the pace in the second, but Crawford’s countering started to come into play and he dropped his man with a short left followed by a right hand. The Texan was keen to get away from anything else and was glad to hear the bell.

The unified champion doubled up his output in the third, getting Crawford in the corner and letting off shots to the body. Crawford tightened up and weathered it fine, and would go onto dodge some hooks to the head. It was a good response to the knockdown, but Crawford just waiting, waiting for that counter and looking so comfortable in there.

Spence came out bloodied in the fourth, Crawford’s stiff, perfectly-timed jab doing its work. Two left hands from the Nebraska man wobbled Spence, and suddenly the shots weren’t coming back so quick. As one man slowed, the other sped up. A clear round for ‘Bud’ Crawford.

The ringside Doctor had a chat with Spence at the start of the fifth. Crawford touched the accelerator again, picking off Spence who could not resist edging ever forward.

It was Crawford who was on the front foot to start the sixth. Spence managed to find a home for some digs to the body, but Crawford landed a statement right hand. His shots too punishing, too accurate, and too well-timed.

Spence gave it everything in the seventh, landed a good left hand but was dropped for his trouble via an uppercut. Crawford smelled blood – and saw considerable amounts – and sent Spence down hard seconds before the bell with another short hook. 10-7 Crawford and the end nearing.

Spence was on the back foot in the eighth, throwing little and waiting for ‘Bud’ – the problem was he hadn’t been able to avoid the shots at his best, and certainly not now. His face wasn’t in a good way at this stage, whereas Crawford was a bright-eyed as his ringwalk.

He had Spence unsteady again in the ninth, and methodically went about forcing the referee to stop it – and not a second too soon. A valiant Spence didn’t touch down for a fourth time, but was on his way to doing so.

Terence ‘Bud’ Crawford danced in the ring as the undisputed champion – the second time he’s achieved such a status – after a performance so good you wouldn’t have thought he was in with one of the best in the world.

He’s made his case for the best fighter in the world, and it’s an extremely hard one to ignore.