Stephen Espinoza gives update on Spence vs. Crawford

By Boxing News - 04/06/2023 - Comments

By Chris Williams: Showtime’s Stephen Espinoza says talks are underway for a summer undisputed welterweight fight between champion Errol Spence Jr and Terence Crawford.

Espinoza says he’s “optimistic” that the Spence-Crawford fight can be negotiated. If not, he says Spence (28-0, 22 KOs) could face former WBA/WBC welterweight champion Keith Thurman. As Espinoza points out, Spence-Thurman would be an excellent fight as well.

Thurman hasn’t fought since last year,  but he’s well-known and possesses far more excellent promotional skills than Crawford.

If Thurman works as hard marketing a fight against Spence as he did for his 2019 bout against Manny Pacquiao, it’ll create massive interest.

Espinoza says that “99%” of the reports that are going around about the Spence vs. Crawford fight are inaccurate. It is indisputable that both fighters want the contest, and are actively engaged, looking to negotiate it for the summer.

Spence vs. Crawford possible for summer

“We tried to make Spence-Crawford last fall, and now hopefully, we’ll get another shot next summer,” said Showtime’s Stephen Espinoza to Fighthype about the possibility of an undisputed welterweight clash between IBF, WBA & WBC champion Errol Spence Jr and WBO champ Terence Crawford taking place in the summer.

“There are talks ongoing, but there are still issues to overcome. As long as everyone is engaged, which everyone is, and as long as everyone is willing to keep working at it, then there’s a good shot at it happening,” Espinoza said about the Spence vs. Crawford fight.

“Look, I think they’re both fantastic fights,” said Espinoza on the possible Spence-Crawford and Keith ‘One Time’ Thurman contests. “There’s a tie-breaker, and one fight is for the undisputed title, and the other one [Spence-Thurman] isn’t. I don’t think boxing fans lose on either one.

“So if the undisputed fight can’t happen, then the Spence-Thurman fight is a rivalry that’s been in the works for quite some time. There’s been some bad blood and animosity going back years, so either way, I think boxing fans win.

“I know what boxing fans want most of all [Spence vs. Crawford]. I’m not going to put a percentage on it. I don’t want to make predictions. There are a lot of rumors going on. 99% of them are wrong, but the one basic fact is that we are still talking. There is NOT a date set.

“They wouldn’t be setting a date until we got to the finish line, and at that point. We’re not going to set any artificial deadlines and say, ‘Here’s the date of the fight. We need to finish the deal.’ That’s putting the cart before the horse.

“We’re going to finish up the deal and set the date. The reality is that everyone wants to break the news and say that they’re in the middle of something. The bottom line is, and the truth is, they [Spence vs. Crawford] are still talking, and people are working hard to get it done.

“I’m optimistic, hoping it will happen because both fighters want it to happen, so I think that’s the big step,” said Espinoza.

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