Saul ‘Canelo’ Álvarez dropped and dominated Jermell Charlo in Las Vegas, clearing the path for his next challenge – and Terence Crawford hasn’t been shy about throwing his hat in the ring.
Canelo was back to his powerful best against a Charlo who fought negatively and defensively. Many feel the Mexican didn’t drop a round on the way to his 60th professional victory. He left the ring with his undisputed status at super-middleweight intact.
Crawford recently became a four-belt champion himself three divisions down. Despite that weight disparity, he has been clear that he is targetting the winner of last night’s bout.
Four-weight world champion Roy Jones Jr is no stranger to bulking up, but from what he saw in Vegas he is advising ‘Bud’ Crawford against the fight – at least for now.
“I think he’s a little big for Crawford. I’m not sure about that. Crawford does have punching power and is sharp, but I think Canelo showed tonight he’s pretty big.”
Speaking to Fight Hub TV, Jones then laid out a safer plan for the Omaha native – fight Charlo first.
“I’d rather see Charlo fight Crawford first and see how that goes. If he does good against Charlo with the weight, then let’s see him come up and fight Canelo, yes, but not right now. I want to see Crawford come up the weight classes and show he can be dominant at 154.”
Despite all the talk, Crawford’s next outing is already decided. Errol Spence Jr has triggered a contractual rematch clause after losing their April bout convincingly, and it’s believed that the champion will honour that in early 2024.
At his post-fight press conference, Canelo confirmed that Crawford was not currently part of his plan.