Terence ‘Bud’ Crawford announced himself as the pound-for-pound king and a worthy ‘face of boxing’ on Saturday night. Now, he as issued a stern warning to the man who may be poised to fight him next.
Crawford became the first undisputed 147lbs champion of the four-belt era, knocking out long-term rival Errol Spence in round nine of their much-anticipated bout, which turned out to be far more one-sided than many fans expected.
The 35-year-old switch-hitter dominated the contest from the opening bell, thrice dropping the previously undefeated Spence before referee, Harvey Dock, waived off the contest in the ninth.
Now, ‘Bud’ is becoming recognised for the generational talent that he is, with fans seemingly less interested in a rematch with Spence after the beatdown – even if it is up at super-welterweight.
Regardless, Spence is expected to move up in weight, but it remains to be seen if Crawford will do the same or if he will defend the undisputed crown.
Should he stay at 147lbs, his IBF mandatory challenger is Jaron ‘Boots’ Ennis, who has twenty-eight knockouts on his thirty-one fight undefeated record.
In a message exchange shared by Wallo267, Crawford disregarded Ennis’ chances in the supposed clash, whilst ‘Boots’ claimed that the champion is a ‘walking victim’ and will swerve the fight in favour of a move up to 154lbs.
Crawford asked the sender if he was ‘trying to see another dead body.’
As Ennis suspects, it’s likely that Spence will activate his rematch clause for a second bout with Crawford, this time at super-welterweight.
Only after that will Crawford need to decide whether to stay at 154lb permanently or return to welterweight for the Ennis fight.