Jose Benavidez Sr. believes Terence Crawford is going to fight the same way Jermell Charlo and William Scull did against Canelo Alvarez by running around the ring all night on September 13th.
Benavidez Sr. Predicts Crawford Runs
Benavidez predicts that Crawford (41-0, 31 KOs) will make it “boring,” and he feels that fans are being naive if they think he’s going to fight “toe-to-toe” against the undisputed super middleweight champion Canelo (63-2-2, 39 KOs). He says it’s “too much weight” for Crawford.
The 38-year-old Crawford is moving up two divisions after a poor showing in his debut at 154 to challenge Canelo for his four belts at 168. Terence should be required to beat two or three killers at super middleweight before being given a title shot. Since he’s not having to do that, there’s no guarantee that he’s going to put in any effort. His paycheck is already guaranteed.
“Eddy Reynoso and Team Canelo are doing a great job. They’re still generating a lot of money, and they’re doing whatever they want to do,” said Jose Benavidez Sr. to Fight Hub TV. “They have those belts hostage. So, they can do whatever they want. But we’re going to see the same fight as [Jermell] Charlo. The same fight we saw with [William Scull. ”
Jose Sr. is right. Crawford will move like Scull and Jermell Charlo did against Canelo to keep from getting knocked out. His estimated purse of $50 million for the fight will be there regardless. So, he doesn’t need to worry about losing out on any money by not trying to win, and running the entire fight. You’d think Turki Alalshikh would have studied the Jermell fight and seen what Crawford’s game would be. He’s not coming to win. It’s all about the payday.
The Gauntlet Crawford Should Face
What Turki should have done is insist that Crawford earn the fight by beating two of the apex predators before he’d agree to give him that giant $50 million. Crawford should have had to run this little gauntlet to get his golden parachute retirement payday:
- David Benavidez
- David Morrell
- Osleys Iglesias
“It’s going to be the same thing with Terence Crawford. He’s a little guy. He’s coming up two divisions to fight Canelo Alvarez, and you think he’s going to go toe-to-toe with Canelo? Come on, man. Terence Crawford is a great fighter, but that’s too much weight for him,” said Jose Sr.
Benavidez Sr. left out Crawford being old and small. He’ll be 38 in September, and he’s going up 14 lbs after looking weak in his debut at 154 against Israil Madrimov. The bulking up that Crawford did by power-feeding and weight training isn’t going to give him the natural strength of a fighter like Canelo. He’ll be the same old Crawford as when he was thin & wiry at 147, but he’ll be slower due to the weight. He’d be better off staying his normal size, as when he was fighting at welterweight, and trying to use speed to win.
“So, he’s going to try to survive, move around, and try to win the rounds. That’s what’s going to happen. I think Canelo, at this stage right now, the legs aren’t the same,” said Benavidez Sr. “The body is not responding the same. So, I think he’s going to have problems trying to catch Terence Crawford. I think it’s going to be the same fight. It’s going to be a boring fight.”
I agree with Jose Sr. We’re going to see nonstop movement from Terence to try and survive, and get hit as seldom as possible by Canelo. It’s too much weight and natural power that Crawford will be giving away to Alvarez. The Nebraska native, “Bud” Crawford, and his trainer, Brian “BoMac” McIntyre, likely have this all mapped out to go into survival mode, move, and pick up that big check. The alternative devious plan would be for Crawford to use the hit-and-run approach, hoping to win a decision. He’d be borrowing from Shakur Stevenson’s fighting style, but he’d be using it against the wrong fighter. Canelo is too big a star to be robbed by the judges.
“I’m hoping it’s going to be a little bit exciting because I heard that Canelo was the worst fight on pay-per-view to throw the fewest punches in history [against Scull]. So, we’re hoping to see a great fight, but that’s not a match-up to be exciting,” said Benavidez Sr.
Crawford Copies Scull’s Canelo Style
Canelo-Crawford will be a little bit more exciting than Alvarez’s clash against William Scull on May 3rd. But it’s not going to be much more thrilling to watch because Crawford has been a mover his entire career, and he’s going to be fighting scared once he gets a taste of Canelo’s power. The way that Terence was praising Scull, saying he was showing “ring generalship” against the Mexican star, it’s clear that he’s going to use that style as his blueprint.