Terence Crawford’s trainer, Brian ‘BoMac’ McIntyre, rejected the possibility of the newly crowned undisputed 168-lb champion fighting Jaron ‘Boots’ Ennis next. He states that Ennis had his chance to fight Crawford to make “good money,” but he didn’t agree to it. That fight is no longer being offered to ‘Boots.’
‘BoMac’ sounded defensive, repeatedly rejecting Ennis as a potential next opponent for Crawford to fight. He made it clear the young phenom is not an option for Bud.
Crawford Calls His Shots
McIntyre states that Crawford (42-0, 31 KOs) has earned the right “Do what he wants to” following his 12-round unanimous decision victory over the Mexican star Canelo Alvarez last month on September 13th.
The 28-year-old Ennis would be a risky fight for Crawford to take, as the Philadelphia native looked like pure gold recently, destroying Uisam Lima in a one-round blowout earlier this month on October 11th. Ennis’s hand speed, combination punching, and youth would be an evil witches’ brew for Crawford to deal with.
The Omaha, Nebraska native had it easy in his last fight against the flat-footed, low-output 35-year-old Canelo. He doesn’t throw combinations and lacks the mobility of the young Ennis.
Waiting on Canelo
‘BoMac’ doesn’t say who Crawford will be fighting next, but he makes it clear that it won’t be the unbeaten ‘Boots’ Ennis (35-0, 31 KOs). It’s believed that Crawford is waiting for Canelo’s left elbow to heal after having recent surgery on it. That’s the biggest payday for Terence. Predictably, that’s the one that he’ll target for his next fight, provided there’s interest on Alvarez’s side.
There’s a possibility that Crawford could move down to middleweight to challenge one of the champions. However, given the risk involved for the 38-year-old, he may choose to sit and wait for the Canelo fight.
“What else does Bud have to prove in the game? He gave those guys an opportunity and they passed it up,” said trainer Brian ‘BoMac’ McIntyre to Thaboxingvoice, rejecting the suggestion that Terence Crawford should fight Jaron ‘Boots’ Ennis next.
If Crawford sits and waits on Canelo, he could be on the sidelines until mid-2026. That’s the timeline being mentioned for when the Mexican star will be healed and ready to fight again following his left elbow surgery. Alvarez will have to let Terence know whether he’ll take the rematch for him to sit idle, waiting for the opportunity for a second giant payday.
Crawford earned a reported $50 million for their fight on September 13th on Netflix. In a rematch, he would likely expect a boost well beyond that figure. Turki Alalshikh hasn’t mentioned whether he’s interested in financing a second fight between them yet. He recently enquired whether David Benavidez could move back down to 168.
Benavidez Rejected Again
That was a big hint that he’s interested in a fight between him and Crawford. However, Terence and ‘BoMac’ have rejected the idea of fighting ‘The Mexican Monster’ Benavidez, which was interesting. This refusal by them doesn’t sit well with Crawford’s claim to be on the Mount Rushmore of boxing as one of the top 4 all-time greats.
Young Lions Shut Out
“‘Boots’ had his chance to make good money. He had his chance to fight Bud, but he passed it up. Vergil Ortiz had his chance. Now you want to give him another chance. The hell with him,” said ‘BoMac’ McIntyre.
As you can see, ‘BoMac’ has no interest in Crawford fighting the young ‘Boots’ Ennis or the dangerous Vergil Ortiz Jr. That’s understandable, given the massive payday that Terence would be risking in a rematch with Canelo. If he were to lose to one of those young apex predators, it would ruin his chances of a lucrative rematch with Alvarez.
BoMac is sounding like a general, being strategic, weighing the odds of letting his aging, batttleworn troops into a confrontation with fresh enemy troops.
BoMac says Crawford has earned the fight to the point where “he could do what he wants to do. He could do what he want to do. He could fight who he wants to fight.”
