Terence Crawford will hope to become world champion in another weight division when he faces Israil Madrimov on Saturday, but he has now revealed who he almost stepped into the ring with instead.
Crawford faces Madrimov for his WBA super-welterweight title in Los Angeles this weekend, attempting to become a four-weight world champion having already reigned at lightweight, super-lightweight and welterweight.
He became undisputed welterweight champion last year after a destructive performance over Errol Spence, arguably cementing his place as pound-for-pound number one in the process.
The duo were then set for a rematch, before Spence was unable to fulfil the obligation in the contracted timeframe due to an eye injury, leaving Crawford looking for a new opponent.
While it may be Madrimov next, Crawford has long been linked to a showdown with Canelo Alvarez, but ‘Bud’ has now explained how a fight against former undisputed super-welterweight champion Jermell Charlo nearly came to fruition.
“Realistically the next step was to do a rematch with Spence. For whatever reason it didn’t happen, so I had to move on with my career. The ultimate goal was to try to get the Canelo fight. That didn’t happen, so we went to the next best thing.
“154 was wide open. I was looking to fight Charlo, he left, so I‘ve got a fight with whoever I could get for a world title. Israil Madrimov is a tremendous fighter. He’s 10-0, already a world champion. He’s a tough dangerous fighter. I think it’s going to be an exciting fight.”
Crawford is a heavy favourite in the fight against Madrimov, but he insists he isn’t overlooking his rival and believes he is the current top fighter at 154lbs.
“I think he’s very strong. I think he’s ‘herky-jerky’. I think he’s illusive, he can box, he can brawl, he can move, he can take a punch and that make for a great fight. I know he’s going to train hard. I know his coaches will train him to be the best that he can be and come fight night he’s going to try to do any and everything to dethrone me from my top spot, even though he’s the champion.
“He wants what I’ve got and that’s the recognition, the accolades, the pound for pound spot. He wants to be on top of the world like myself. He’s going to be filled with so much energy to prove to the world that he belongs in the ring with the top fighters. I consider Israil the best 154lbs fighter in the division right now. So why not go for the top guy in the division, right off the bat?
“As for myself, I’ve been here before. This is nothing new. I know how to handle things like this. I know how to go about fighting these type of guys that have a lot to prove. Come fight night I will show the world once and for all, once again, why I’m the best fighter on the planet.”
Crawford will be competing on the first Riyadh Season card held in the USA, and he has heaped praise on Turki Alalshikh for his involvement within boxing.
“I’m very excited to be headlining His Excellency Turki Alalshikh’s first card in the USA. I’m very excited for the first big event coming to America. Being the headliner of the event is a big honour. It’s going to be a tremendous event. There’s a stacked undercard and I’m just happy to be a part of it.
“In today’s age, it’s one of the best undercards that has been put together since back in the day. Pretty much six fights on the undercard could be main events. With that being said, all of them put on one card is a blessing. I’ve been talking to His Excellency for years now. This is the right time for us to partner up and do a big event. I’m quite positive that this is going to be a huge event.”
Saturday’s card features a stacked undercard, including Isaac Cruz vs. Jose Valnzuela for the WBA super-lightweight title, David Morrell against Radivoje Kalajdzic for the WBA light-heavyweight title, Andy Ruiz taking on Martin Bakole, and Jared Anderson facing Martin Bakole.
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