Unified welterweight champion and pound-for-pound star Terence Crawford fought just once in 2023 and that ultimately cost him the Fighter of the Year award. Now, as ‘Bud’ seeks to kickstart 2024, there is one potential opponent that can already be ruled out.
Crawford dominated Errol Spence Jr back in July, knocking out his fellow American in a brutal performance that crowned him as the first four-belt undisputed welterweight champion and the first multi-divisional four-belt undisputed title-holder.
However, just four months later, the IBF stripped Crawford of his belt and awarded the title to Jaron ‘Boots’ Ennis. Naturally, this birthed talks of a clash between Crawford and Ennis.
Spence’s decision to activate his rematch clause for a second showdown with Crawford, possibly up at super-welterweight, appeared to get in the way of those potential plans.
However, on the Stephen A. Smith YouTube channel, esteemed boxing journalist Dan Rafael confirmed that Spence will be unavailable to take part in a rematch and as a result Crawford is free to consider alternate challengers.
“It seems as though the rematch with Errol Spence is not going to take place for a variety of reasons, including the fact that Errol is on the side-lines after having a recent cataract surgery.
“So Crawford is in need of an opponent, but it has not been Canelo or anybody out of his team that has been saying he wants Crawford. I think that is more of a social media and a rumour sort of situation.”
Now, the decision lays with Crawford, who has threated to jump up to either super-welterweight or super-middleweight in pursuit of improving his legacy. However, there are still plenty of suitors for him in his more natural division at 147lbs.