Terence Crawford says he’d beat Canelo, warns Spence not to move up

By Boxing News - 10/12/2021 - Comments

By Sean Jones: Terence Crawford says he believes he could Canelo Alvarez. WBO welterweight champion Crawford (37-0, 28 KOs) thinks he can beat almost anyone around his weight class, but it would mean a lot if he could back up his words by defeating Canelo.

If Crawford because Canelo, that would settle the argument from fans in who deserves to be the #1 pound-for-pound fighter in the sport.

Crawford feels that he should be #1, but he’s not beaten the same level of opposition as Canelo, which is why it’s impossible to view him as belonging at the top.

While Crawford believes he can beat Canelo (56-1-2, 38 KOs), he thinks Errol Spence Jr. can do it. He feels that Spence is too stationary for him to defeat Canelo.

Next month, Crawford will be defending his WBO title against Shawn Porter (31-3-1, 17 KOs) in the main event on November 20th at the Mandalay Bay Resort & Casino in Las Vegas.

Crawford says Canelo would be bad for Spence

“I don’t think that would be a good fight for Spence because he’s right there for Canelo,” said Terence Crawford to the DAZN Boxing Show when asked about Spence moving up to fight Canelo.

Image: Terence Crawford says he'd beat Canelo, warns Spence not to move up

“Canelo is the bigger, stronger fighter, bigger puncher. For Spence to be right there in front of him trying to kick down the front door, you’re giving him [Canelo] everything he wants.

“Who me? Yeah, I’ll beat any of these fighters,” Crawford said when asked if he could beat Canelo. “Sometimes, I can’t believe it that I’m the best fighter in the world. I’m the best. I really believe it. I be like, ‘Damn, I’m Terence Crawford,” said Terence.

The way that Errol looked in his last fight against Danny Garcia, post-car crash, he likely wouldn’t do well against Canelo. For Spence to have a chance of beating Canelo, he would need to use the same game plan that he employed in his win over Mikey Garcia in 2019.

But against Canelo, Spence would need to use a lot more movement because he might get hurt if he stands in front of the Mexican star.

Plant is tailormade for Canelo

“They’re different styles,” said Crawford when told that Canelo could have problems with Plant because he struggled against boxers like Erislandy Lara in the past.

“Lara will move. Caleb Plant is right in front of you. Definitely,”  said Crawford when asked if Plant is ‘tailormade’ for Canelo because he’ll stand directly in front of him, unlike Lara, who uses movement.

“Lara’s legs are different than Caleb Plant’s. Yeah,” said Crawford when asked if Lara is a ‘harder fight’ for Canelo than Caleb Plant.

“Because Lara is going to move more than Caleb. He’s going to move with that Cuban style. “He’s [Plant] capable of beating Canelo, but it’s going to be tough,” Crawford said.

Plant does move around the ring. It’s unclear what gave Crawford the impression that Plant is a stationary fighter, as he’s able to move when he’s fighting opposition with a big punch.

Up until now, Plant hasn’t had to use his wheels that much because he’s always been the superior fighter during his 21-fight career.

Against Canelo, Plant will have to use his legs if he doesn’t want to get caught by one of his big shots.

Canelo as pound-for-pound #1

“Yeah, if he becomes undisputed and beats all the champions, of course,” said Crawford when asked if he’ll be comfortable with Canelo being called the #1 pound-for-pound if he successfully defeats Plant on November 6th.

“One thing you could to understand about Terence Crawford,” said Crawford in speaking in the third person. “He never had any doubt or any questions about why I’m performing the way I’m performing.

“So there will never be anything like that with Terence Crawford, and that’ll carry on for the rest of his career.

“He’s definitely moving on with his life because he’s still allowed to fight,” said Crawford about Canelo testing positive for the banned PED clenbuterol in 2018. “No one is ever going to be able to say that about me, and I don’t even like taking vitamins.

“So, I don’t have the trouble of saying, ‘It’s in the meat.’ What meat you eating? But Canelo’s great.”

If Canelo defeats Plant to become the undisputed champion at super middleweight, Ring Magazine will keep him at the #1 spot, and there won’t be much Crawford can say about it.

It would be pointless for Crawford to try telling boxing fans that he deserves to be the #1 pound-for-pound fighter in the sport if Canelo captures the final title at 168.

For Crawford to become the #1 pound-for-pound fighter in the sport, he’ll likely need to become the undisputed champion at 147 and then move up to pick off IBF/WBA/WBC 154-lb champion Jermell Charlo.

It would be better for Crawford if Charlo wins the WBO 154-lb title to become the undisputed champion.

That way, when Crawford beats Charlo, he’ll become undisputed in a second weight class, assuming he chooses to round up all the belts at 147 first.