By Allan Fox: Welterweight champion Errol Spence Jr. he’ll beat Terence Crawford and likely knock him out when the two of them fight soon. Although IBF/WBC 147-pound champion Spence (26-0, 21 KOs) has respect for Crawford (36-0, 27 KOs), he feels he’d outpunch him and possibly knock him out.
Spence is a bad style match-up for Crawford, and he could wear him down the way that Egidijus Kavaliauskas was doing and stop him.
Crawford will need to slug against Spence
Spence is more rugged, and a classic knockout artist than Crawford. For Crawford to have any chance against Spence, he would need to revamp his game. Switching stances and counter-punching isn’t going to get the job done for Crawford.
That’s stuff that’s talked about by commentators, but in reality, it doesn’t help Crawford. He’s a much better fighter when he’s using his orthodox stance and is coming forward-looking to be aggressive.
A knockout win for Spence over Crawford would be a tremendous victory, and it prove to boxing fans that size, power, and a strong chin is more critical having excellent technical boxing skills.
The way that Egidijus Kavaliauskas was able to hurt Crawford and drop him last December makes Spence believe that he’ll knock him out. Spence also notes that little Yuriorkis Gamboa was also able to hurt Crawford in their fight in 2014.
Spence says the fight with Crawford can happen in 2021. He’s talked to his adviser Al Haymon, and he sees the battle with the Top Rank promoted Crawford as a real possibility.
Keith Thurman is a fake dude – Spence
“As long as it makes sense and the money is there, then it’s going to happen,” said Spence to Behind The Gloves on a fight with Crawford. “I talked to Al [Haymon], and we had numerous discussions about it, and he said the same thing. When it makes sense, hopefully, it can happen next year.
“I’m looking forward to fight Terence Crawford. A lot of his fans saying I’m ducking him, and that’s not the case at all. There’s no ducking in our situation at all. I’m not the type of guy that would duck anybody. So It’s going to happen. I think Terence Crawford is really himself.
“With a lot of guys, I think they’re fake. Keith Thurman, he’s a fake dude, and I feel like sometimes Shawn Porter is talking out of the side of his mouth. There are a lot of guys like Pacquiao and Terence Crawford; they’re real dudes. Danny Garcia, he’s a genuine dude. I’ve talked to him before,” said Spence of Danny.
Spence sounds like he’s still got some bad blood with former WBC/WBA welterweight champion Keith ‘One Time’ Thurman for him not giving hi a fight all these years. Four years ago, Spence wanted to fight Thurman, but he wasn’t given a chance. Now that Thurman is no longer a world champion following his loss to Manny Pacquiao, he still has shown little interest in fighting Spence.
Spence: I’d outpunch Crawford
“I think that’s a classic fight,” said Spence on a fight with Crawford. “That’s a legacy-defining fight. I just feel that’s a legendary fight that people would talk about for a long time. And I think a lot f young boxers would watch that fight and remember that fight. I think we both have the skills, both have the talent, and both have the will.
“I feel like I’d beat Crawford and outpunch him. If that Russian dude [Egidijus Kavaliauskas] that knocked him down, I would have a great chance of stopping him. I think he’s [Crawford] been hurt by Gamboa too. I’d have a great chance of stopping him. I respect his skills.
“He’s got good skills, but I’d definitely stop him, especially with how focused I am right now. Even in the Shawn Porter fight, I was blown up to, the Shawn Porter and Mikey Garcia fight,” said Spence.
Spence vs. Crawford could be a legendary fight, but that would depend mainly on his the Nebraska native fights. Although Crawford has stationary in the last couple of years against the beatable opposition his promoters have put him in, he doesn’t stand and fight when he faces someone that has talent.
The size, power, and the relentless manner that Spence fights, it would cause Crawford nightmares. Crawford would likely need to get on his bike and start moving all around the ring to avoid Spence the way he’s done in some fights when he starts getting outpunched by his opponents.
Making weight has been a problem for Errol
“As a matter of fact, in the Mikey Garcia fight, I had to sit in the sauna for two hours,” said Spence about his weight problems. “I didn’t sweat, and I didn’t sweat until after an hour of being in the Sauna. I didn’t sweat at all. Even in the Shawn Porter fight, I had blown up to 190 or something like that, and I had to lose a lot and killing myself to make weight.
“Getting way too comfortable, eating a lot. I feel like my car accident was a wakeup call from God, telling me to really focus and bite down and refocus on what’s going on. I feel like I wasn’t as focused as I am now. It’s kind of like from the Kell Brook fight and before that, how focused I am now,” said Spence.
Making weight could be a problem for Spence if he doesn’t train during the off time. What he doesn’t need is to balloon up to 230 pounds, and start training camp in 2021 for the Crawford fight. It would require an extra-long camp that would be a de facto fat farm for Spence, and that’s too much weight for him to shed.
Unlike Spence, Crawford doesn’t pack on a lot of weight in between fights. He looks like he’s in fighting shape year-round, and that makes it easier for him to get down to 147 without weakening himself.
Spence ready to prove doubters wrong
“I got a lot of people to prove wrong,” said Spence. “There’s been a lot of things people have been saying on Youtube, ‘Is he still going to be the same. Is he going to fight the same? Is his reflexes going to be the same?’ So I still have got a lot to prove in the ring and to other people that I’m still Errol Spence.
“Some members of the media and some people are cruel, and say all types of stuff, you know? But I don’t feel like I’ve been unfairly criticized. If someone gets in a car accident like that like I got into, and the car flipped that many times and I got thrown out the card.
“Everything that I’ve been through in a car accident like that, people are going to have thoughts and opinions on my situation, and they want to see how I come back. It’s just added motivation,” said Spence.
There are, of course, a lot of boxing fans that are doubting of Spence after his car crash. It’s not personal on their part for them to have questions in their minds about whether Spence will be able to come back from his car crash. But when a person is in a car accident like the one that Spence was in, you naturally wonder if that person is still convincing.
