Coach Stephen Edwards believes 37-year-old junior middleweight Terence Crawford can transfer up two divisions and provides Canelo Alvarez suits at 168 together with his motion. He says that Crawford can defeat Canelo if he can transfer like he did when he fought Viktor Postol in 2016, which is bodily unimaginable with no totally functioning time machine.
Edwards feels that Crawford (41-0, 31 KOs) can be at a “comfy” weight at 168, prepared to maneuver like he did when he was significantly youthful and lighter in opposition to the skinny, lighter-punching Postol. He argues that Crawford can beat Canelo if he punches on the transfer like he did in opposition to Postol.
Edwards is a basic instance of a Crawford fan who feels that he’s infallible, can beat anybody with motion, and has an offense restricted to potshots. These Crawford followers don’t need to settle for that he’s gotten previous, reached his ceiling at 154, and misplaced his nerve to struggle the highest guys throughout his dangerous expertise in opposition to Israil Madrimov.
Can Crawford Discover His Previous 2016 Legs?
To again up his declare, Edwards feedback on a clip of Crawford shifting across the ring for almost a minute in opposition to Postol earlier than dropping him with a single punch in what seems to be a flash knockdown.
Crawford hasn’t moved like that in a few years, and he confirmed little or no mobility in his current struggle in his debut at 154 in opposition to WBA junior middleweight champion Israil Madrimov on August third.
In that struggle, Crawford ate arduous proper fingers from Madrimov all evening and narrowly edged a 12-round unanimous choice that simply may have gone the opposite means. Edwards says that the rationale Crawford didn’t transfer extra is as a result of he didn’t need to.
I’m unsure that’s the fact. It seemed extra like age and inactivity, having taken away Crawford’s age. He wasn’t stationary on goal in that struggle as a result of he was getting hit more durable than he ever had, and the struggle got here right down to the final three rounds.
Even when Crawford tried to struggle the way in which he did eight years in the past when he beat Postol, he couldn’t. He wouldn’t transfer for 12 rounds like that, significantly if he bulked as much as struggle at 168 in opposition to Canelo.
Stephen believes Canelo could select to struggle Crawford. Nevertheless, that could be wishful considering. If Canelo sees the previous clip of Terence’s struggle in opposition to Postol, it’s uncertain he’ll struggle him as a result of, at 34, he received’t need to struggle a runner. Canelo doesn’t struggle guys that transfer lots as a result of he doesn’t wish to cope with all of the motion at his age.
Crawford himself wouldn’t struggle somebody who had a nightmarish model for him like David Benavidez as a result of it might stand no probability of successful.
Furthermore, this could be a no-win match-up for Canelo, the place he wouldn’t obtain credit score for beating Crawford, and he’d be criticized for the rest of his profession if he struggled to win or misplaced. It could be the identical state of affairs for Crawford if he fought Jaron ‘Boots’ Ennis and was made to look dangerous in successful or if he misplaced.
Not surprisingly, Crawford has proven little interest in combating Boots as a result of there’s nothing to realize in that struggle and every little thing to lose. Crawford is extra fashionable than Boots. It could be him getting every little thing out of the match. Canelo is way extra fashionable than Crawford, who is simply well-known to hardcore followers.
Who Will Meet Canelo’s $150M Value?
Canelo has already stated he received’t take the struggle with Crawford. So, it’s form of pointless to bang on about it except somebody meets the Mexican star’s asking worth of $150 million. He needs that form of money for the Crawford struggle, and there’s nobody on earth prepared to pay him that form of cash.
What Crawford ought to do is neglect about Canelo and both struggle the blokes at 154 which are prepared to face him or retire.
You see how nicely Crawford punched on the transfer, boxed and was concurrently defensively accountable….this struggle lets me know he can struggle a method that might give Canelo suits. Absolute suits. If he doesnt get clipped, he would outbox the ATG Canelo. https://t.co/nkGwXFMEOx
— Stephen Edwards (@BreadmanBoxing) October 24, 2024
