“I don’t know if he can see punches coming. People get stuck in the past. Let go of that stuff, EJ. Forget about that stuff, EJ,” Thurman told Fight Hub TV, talking about Spence holding a grudge against him and not wanting to fight him because Keith wouldn’t face him when he was on top.
The irony here is thick. Back in 2016, when Thurman was “One Time” and ruling the division, he famously told Spence to “stay in line” and wait his turn. Now that the roles have reversed, and Spence has moved on after the Crawford loss, Thurman is suddenly the one preaching about letting go of the past. It’s hard to take the “Drop that stuff, EJ” line seriously when it sounds less like a peace offering and more like an attempt to get a final big check.
Spence has repeatedly said he is no longer interested in fighting Thurman because Thurman wouldn’t fight him when he was at the top of his game, 2015-2017. This was when Keith held the WBA and WBC welterweight titles, and Spence was trying to get a fight against him.
Thurman faces WBC junior middleweight champion Sebastian Fundora this Saturday night on Amazon Prime PPV, and he is not expected to win.
There are a few reasons why it feels so desperate right now: First, it’s dangerous to look past the 6’6″ Fundora. If Thurman is clipped or outworked this Saturday, any talk of a Spence fight evaporates immediately. He’s pushing for a fight he might not even be eligible for by Sunday morning.
For Spence, it’s not just about a grudge to freeze Thurman out; it’s about brand management. He was ignored by the top dog for years. Now that he has the leverage, giving Thurman the opportunity he was once denied feels like a betrayal of his own journey to the top.
Thurman mentioned that the biggest fight of Spence’s career was “supposed” to be him. That may have been true in 2017, but after the Crawford masterclass, the boxing world shifted. Thurman is trying to revive a rivalry that the public has largely moved on from.
“How do you want to represent yourself now, EJ? What are you going to do to Keith Thurman now? The biggest fight of your career was supposed to be Keith Thurman, which ended up being Terence Crawford,” Thurman said.
Thurman is still a big talker, but the “salesman” talk is obvious as he tries to convince Spence to do something that benefits Keith far more than it benefits Errol. If he loses to Fundora, this whole press run is going to age poorly.
