Trainer Calvin Ford expects to see improvements in the strength of Terence Crawford in his next fight at 154. Ford thinks Crawford will look much better in the power department in his next fight at junior middleweight whoever he faces.
Ford is not saying where Crawford will find some strength to compete with the killers in the 154 lb division because he is on the old side of making progress in this area. It’s not like he can go to Walmart and buy some Julian Jackson-level power.
Fans expected Crawford (41-0, 31 KOs) to look as dominant in his fight against WBA junior middleweight champion Israil Madrimov in their Aug. 3 fight as he did a year earlier against Errol Spence at welterweight. However, Crawford didn’t look like the same guy power-wise and was forced to eat a lot of hard punches from ‘Little GGG’ Madrimov, who landed the more effective punches throughout the 12-round contest.
The judges gave Crawford the win based on his jab, but it wasn’t an impressive win. Crawford looked like the loser at the end, with their face beaten, tired, and a hangdog look, as if he knew he had gotten the worst of it.
“Canelo is the King. Whatever he says, but it’s a good fight. I’d like to see that fight come to fruition,” coach Calvin Ford said Battle hype when asked about his thoughts on a fight between Canelo Alvarez and Terence Crawford. “I watched Canelo. He made some good moves in terms of fighting and whatnot. So, again, he is the King.’
Canelo is out of Crawford’s class in terms of power, size and technical ability. The Nebraska native should focus on more realistic targets, such as WBC and WBO junior middleweight champion Sebastian Fundora. It’s a good start for Crawford, and if he wins it, he could move behind the winner of the Tim Tszyu vs. Bakhram Murtazaliev showdown for the undisputed championship at 154.
“This is his first fight. I can’t say he didn’t carry his strength there. He had to make adjustments and stuff,” Ford said. “It was his first fight at that weight,” Ford said, responding that Crawford didn’t seem to carry his strength up to 154 in his first fight in the division against Israil Madrimov on Aug. 3.
“It was like my man, ‘The Monster’ (David) Benavidez went up in weight (to light heavyweight). It is based on making adjustments. I hope Terence Crawford gets another fight at that weight so he can show the world it’s there. If it’s not there, we’re going to start asking.”
What adjustments can Crawford make to gain hitting power? Either you have it or you don’t. It’s not like Crawford can throw his punches at a different angle to find power he was never meant to possess at 154. Just because Crawford was a semi-puncher at 135, 140 and 154 doesn’t mean he’s going to be one at 154 or 168.
“Crawford is a bad boy. He moves up because he wants to get the fights. He’s not getting any younger,” Ford said. “So, he’s doing all the things he had to do to put his legacy.”
If Crawford really wants the Canelo fight, the best way to get that fight is to forget about 154 and shoot up to 168 to take on one of these talents:
– David Benavidez
– Christian Mbilli
– Diego Pacheco
–David Morrell
– Caleb Plant
– Jaime Munguia
Beating two or three of those fighters at 168 would be the key to the Kingdom for Crawford, opening the drawbridge for him to meet with King Canelo in his royal chamber. But the way Crawford is going about it now, campaigning like a politician running for office, makes him look like he’s desperate for a retirement payday. Canelo can’t respect that.
