By Chris Williams: Trainer Brian ‘BoMac’ McIntyre confirms that Terence ‘Bud’ Crawford will definitely be fighting on June 5th, likely in the Middle East. He says Manny Pacquiao is still a possibility.
Two high-profile options are in the running for Crawford’s June 5th fight, which will be on pay-per-view. Interestingly, Shawn Porter is NOT one of the possibilities, says BoMac.
It might be someone that boxing fans least suspect to be the Plan-B for Crawford, which would make it a problem if Top Rank sticks the fight on pay-per-view.
With Porter not the Plan-B for WBO welterweight champion Crawford (37-0, 28 KOs), that leaves a question mark about who the other big-name guy is.
Keith ‘One Time’ Thurman has been rumored to be the backup option for Crawford, but he said last week that he’s not in negotiations with him.
Thurman is looking fat and nothing like the fighter he’d been during his prime. It’s fair to say that the pandemic hasn’t been kind to Thurman’s physique, as now starting to look old and past it.
Terence definitely fighting on June 5th
“We’re definitely going to fight on June 5th,” Crawford’s trainer Brian ‘BoMac’ McIntyre said to Town Bizznizz sports and ent. “We’re looking at the Middle East. We got a couple of opponents on the chopping block.
“I can’t say right now, but he’s definitely going to go through in the Middle East.
“That’s where all big money is, right? We’re almost at the end of his [Crawford] career.
“He probably got a couple of years left, so you got to maximize the star-power that he has and get the guys that he wants.
“If it’s Pacquiao if it’s Spence if it’s Porter if it’s Ortiz, whoever it is. If they [boxing fans] don’t like it, I can’t do too much about it.
“The fans want certain fights, but sometimes the stars don’t line up for those fights to happen, but sometimes the stars do line up like Bud’s next fight.
“As we’re looking at it, it might be Pacquiao or the next biggest 140-pound fighter that is coming up in the division. Let the man fight. That’s all we want to do.
“Let him prove he’s the best man in the division, and take on all challengers and knock him down as he comes in.
“Bud doesn’t like to party,” said McIntyre when asked about how much time he has left in boxing. “Four or five more years with two fights a year, that’s what I’m thinking.
“After October [when Crawford’s contract with Top Rank expires], after his next fight, he’ll sit down with the best company or the best network that’s going to offer the best deal that he wants, I can see him going for the next four or five years,” said McIntyre about how much time Crawford has left in his career.
If Crawford does fight in the Middle East on June 5th, it’s going to have to be someone good for one of those countries to put up a bunch of money.
They’re not going to be too pleased if Crawford’s opponent is another shot fighter like Kell Brook, Amir Khan, or one of the flawed fringe contenders.
Crawford to fight twice in 2021
“We’re going to try and come back in December or November to try and get two fights this year,” said BoMac about Crawford’s plans to fight twice in 2021, once on June 5th and another time in December.
“Yeah, I would say it’s [Crawford’s next fight] will be on pay-per-view. It’s going to be a high-caliber opponent, and it’s probably definitely going to be over there in the Middle East.
“They got more money over there. Any of the Americans that want to go over there, as soon as the fight is announced, you better get your tickets because they’re going to go fast.
“I’m looking at a couple of days,” BoMac said when asked ‘when will we get an announcement?’
“I’m still waiting; we’re all still waiting. Some more things need to be signed off, and then we’ll go from there,” said BoMac on Crawford’s next fight.
If Crawford is still with Top Rank by December, it should be interesting to see if Bob Arum pulls the trigger on the Vergil Ortiz Jr fight.
Crawford sounds REALLY negative about fighting the 22-year-old Ortiz, as he likely knows how hard that fight will be for him.
The soon-to-be 34-year-old Crawford is too old to be fighting the kind of war that Ortiz would turn it into. BoMac sounds naive and entirely confused with his vision of how Vergil Ortiz Jr and Crawford’s fight would play out.
The way Bomac describes it, he seems to think that Crawford is facing another one of the fodder fighters that Top Rank has been feeding him throughout his 13-year pro career. That’s how it is.
When a fighter and their trainer don’t realize that they’ve been facing carefully selected weak opposition, they’re in shock when the blinders come off, and they’re forced to face reality by going up against a good fighter for once.
The chances are very high that Vergil Ortiz Jr would make Crawford look his age if they fought and knock him out. But at least Crawford understands how tough the fight with Vergil will be.
The way Terence dismissed the fight in lightning fashion, he betrayed what’s going on mentally. He doesn’t want any part of Vergil, and you can’t blame him. It’s a nightmarish fight for Crawford, who is in his mid-30s now, and heading towards his golden years.
BoMac explains why Crawford NOT fighting Porter
“If the stars line up the way we like and we can the fights up there [154], that’s a great possibility,” said BoMac about Crawford possibly moving up to junior middleweight to try and become undisputed if he can’t get the fights at 147.
“We’d have no problems fighting at 154 to accomplish the things we want to accomplish.
“It’s just not enough money, and those guys do want to fight,” said BoMack about the money that the PBC welterweights want to fight Crawford.
“They want to fight, but there’s just not enough money. ‘I’m not going to accept $2 million or $3 million.’ That’s a lot of money for me and you.
“But after those guys pay their trainers, fees, and taxes, I guess it’s not worth it to them. I know that offers went out to Danny Garcia and Keith Thurman.
“And I believe an offer went out to Shawn Porter, but that didn’t materialize. I don’t know how much money they were offering him. And I know pretty much what those guys want over there,” said BoMac.
If Crawford doesn’t get the fight with Manny Pacquiao on June 5th, it’s going to have to be someone perfect to justify him not facing Porter.
Thurman is coming off a loss to Pacquiao, and he hasn’t fought in two years. As fat as Thurman is right now, Chris Williams doubts that he could whittle all that weight off before June 5th. It obviously won’t be Errol Spence Jr that Crawford will use as his Plan-B.
Other potential options for Crawford’s June 5th fight:
- Danny Garcia
- Jaron Ennis
- Mikey Garcia
- David Avanesyan
- Yordenis Ugas
Of those names, only Mikey Garcia has the popularity needed for Crawford to fight on pay-per-view. Spence recently beat Danny Garcia, so there’s no point in Crawford fighting him on PPV.
Crawford my wreck Vergil Ortiz’s career
“One thing about [Vergil] Ortiz is he does come in with his head and with his hands up,” said BoMac on what Crawford could do to Vergil if that fight happens.
He’ll [Vergil] will take a couple of shots to try and land his three or four shots to the body.
“He’ll rush in and come in low, and then once he comes in, he’ll raise up and come up with a hook or overhand right. We [Crawford] ain’t going for that s***,” said a bitter BoMac, sounding like he’s still upset about seeing Ortiz stop his fighter Maurice Hooker.
“If Bud sees him coming in low, either two things are going to happen. He’s either going to meet him at the spot or throw the uppercut, and then it’s a wrap after that.
“As far as Bud, he would kill that dude [Vergil Ortiz]. He would destroy his career. He got the buzz; Ortiz got the buzz right now. One thing about Oscar [De La Hoya of Golden Boy Promotions], he’ll put him in there.
“He put Canelo in there with Floyd, and Canelo got that loss. Now, look where he’s at. I feel that Ortiz can be the same way because if he steps in there with Bud, he’s definitely going to get beat. Still, maybe he can bounce back,” said BoMac about Vergil Ortiz Jr potentially learning from a fight with Crawford the way Canelo Alvarez learned from his loss to Floyd Mayweather Jr.
“Well, by the time we [Crawford] get to that fight [with Ortiz], Bob [Arum] probably won’t be in the picture by that point.
“We’re going to get past our next fight, and then that could be an option [Ortiz for Crawford].
“Terence likes to fight at home. He could put 20,000 in there in Lincoln [Nebraska] or 110,000 in there. Again, we’ll look at our options and go from there.” BoMac said.
It’s going to be hard for Crawford to “destroy” Vergil Ortiz’s career is if he’s totally unwilling to fight him.
After watching Vergil (17-0, 17 KOs) chop down his stablemate Maurice ‘Mighty Mo’ Hooker in seven rounds on March 20th, Crawford quickly rejected a fight with him.
It would be understandable for Crawford t turn down a fight with Ortiz Jr if he was fighting better opposition, but that hasn’t been the case. Crawford has been fighting guys that Vergil would destroy his entire 13-year professional career.
There’s no one on Crawford’s 37-fight resume that Ortiz wouldn’t beat, which can only mean one thing. Crawford is ducking him.