Crawford Backs Himself To Beat Anyone – Would He Beat Mayweather?
There is very little to choose between Terence Crawford and Floyd Mayweather if they faced off.
That is according to Oscar De La Hoya. Mayweather is regarded as one of the best ever to have put on a pair of boxing gloves. He retired undefeated with a 50-0 record, beating the most number of world champions. Maywather also modelled his career on a mixture of attacking brilliance and defensively astute boxing skills. He successfully transitioned into a defensive master in the latter part of his career, following the earlier days of ‘Pretty Boy Floyd.’ Mayweather also beat the best boxer of his era, dethroning Manny Pacquiao. His career also included victories against Canelo Alvarez and Zab Judah.
Crawford is also undefeated. He is a three-weight world champion. Unlike Mayweather, he has become undisputed in two weight classes at 140 and 147. He became the first Undisputed Welterweight Champion of the four-belt era, beating Spence via a ninth-round stoppage. Spence was regarded as the best welterweight in his weight class.
Crawford vs. Mayweather
Crawford is now chasing more legacy by fighting Israil Madrimov at 154 on August 3. A win makes him a four-weight world champion, allowing him to pursue undisputed at either 154 or move up to target the Canelo Alvarez fight at 168 for all the belts. Given that Crawford and Mayweather are some of the best ever to do it, there is very little to separate them. But De La Hoya backed Mayweather to do it.
“When I saw Crawford and Spence, wow. What a massive performance, you know? And ballsy too. The thing with Mayweather is he’s a master defensive boxer. Master. He knows how to pick his shots and he’ll frustrate you to a point where you’re gonna make mistakes.
“The questions would’ve been does Crawford get frustrated and make mistakes? Offensively I think Crawford is better. Throw more punches, combinations, he had a better chance of landing. Mayweather was just a one-two type of puncher. Who knows? It’s a debate … Who would’ve gotten frustrated faster?” De La Hoya said
Who Is Better?
Crawford has backed himself to beat anyone. His advantages over Mayweather is that he can make adjustments from orthodox and southpaw. He is also considered one of the smartest boxers in the sport. Although Mayweather is one of the best defensive boxers ever, facing Crawford in his prime would have been the toughest challenge of his career. It is a match up that we will never get to see, leaving fans wondering what would have happened. But if Crawford becomes undisputed in a third weight class, it is hard to argue that he is not one of the best ever to do it. Based on his comments, Crawford felt no one could beat him.
“My mindset is always, win at all costs. Make sure I’m coming in at 110% shape and prepared for whatever the opponent brings to the table. Make sure that I’m at the best of my abilities going into a fight so I don’t have to worry about anybody else. A lot of people ask me ‘what have you got to do to win a fight’, and I always say, ‘just be myself’. I always say that because I obviously feel that I’m Terence Crawford and can’t nobody beat me unless I beat myself,” Crawford stated
Comments
Find all the latest boxing news and MMA breaking updates on boxingnews.com.
