In front of a packed arena in his hometown of Omaha, Nebraska, Terence Crawford showed that there were levels to the sport by stopping David Avanesyan at the halfway stage.
The fight, which was for Crawford’s WBO World Welterweight title, made headlines for the wrong reasons in the lead up. Fans were left disappointed as hopes that they would see Crawford face Errol Spence Jr were dashed after what seemed to be relatively productive negotiations.
When it was announced that tough Russian, Avanesyan, would be the champion’s opponent on a little-known broadcaster called BLK Prime, many in the sport felt hard done by.
Still, ‘Bud’ can only beat who’s in front of him, and that he did.
Known to start slower than his opponents, if Crawford was to be wrong-footed ‘Ava’ had to do something quickly. He caught the eye with some good shots, particularly in the second round, however ‘Bud’ started to up the gears as he’s known to. By the time it reached the sixth round, his combinations were becoming more prolific and his countering more punishing.
Left uppercuts were finding the challenger’s chin and, towards the beginning of the round, Crawford followed one up with a short, sharp right hand. It laid Avanesyan out flat on his back, and that was it.
💥 Terence Crawford (@terencecrawford) gets the KO shot on David Avanesyan!
— Fight Network (@fightnet) December 11, 2022
Explosive KO from Terence Crawford, who retained his welterweight title in Round 6 vs. David Avanesyan. Story by @Ben_Baby. 🎥: @BLKPRIMEB0XING#CrawfordAvanesyanhttps://t.co/bFt1IE5NkTpic.twitter.com/4AOZ6KQH1h
— Mike Coppinger (@MikeCoppinger) December 11, 2022
It was Crawford’s sixth title defence in a row, tenth knockout in a row, and thirty ninth win in a row. He was reportedly paid $10 million for the showing. He said afterwards that he wanted big fights.
“This was a one-fight deal [with BLK Prime]. Hopefully, we can go to the drawing board and these big fights come about in the near future.”
‘These big fights are, of course, referring to Spence Jr – who was in a car accident on Saturday. Thankfully, it doesn’t look to be nearly as serious as the life-threatening one he was involved in back in 2019. Upon hearing the news, Crawford wished his rival well.
“I wish him well. I hope he’s alright – mentally, physically and emotionally. This is just a sport. We’re all fighting for that number one spot, so it ain’t personal. It’s just business.”