Crawford “Can Make It Easy” from Canelo – Shakur Stevenson

Shakur Stevenson believes Terence Crawford will beat Canelo Alvarez and that he “can make it a very easy fight” when they meet in September.

WBC lightweight champion Stevenson says he’s been saying for years that he thinks Crawford (41-0, 31 KOs) will beat Canelo. He says Canelo won’t be able to walk through Crawford’s punches because he feels he can punch at “any weight class”.

Crawford didn’t look powerful in his debut at 154 against Israil Madrimov and couldn’t hurt him with his best punches. Madrimov looked like he was doing more dangerous, and he wasn’t even picking up his punches like he usually does.

“Easy job” For Bud?

“I’ve been saying this for years now. I’m probably the first one to say it, even before Terence said it. I always thought that his (Crawford) style vs. Canelo, I think he beats Canelo,” Shakur Stevenson said. talkSport Boxing on his belief that Crawford will beat Canelo. “I’m not saying it will be an easy fight, but he can make it a very easy fight.”

“I ran into Terence in Dubai, and he’s really fatter. He has recently gained weight. He’s 38,” Gareth A. Davies said of the taller-looking Crawford. “He got fat.”

“That’s another thing too. I don’t think Canelo is hitting his stride. Terence can hit, and that goes for any weight class,” Shakur said.

As Shakur makes it sound, Crawford will stand in the bag and go to war with Canelo in September. That’s not realistic given how Crawford has traditionally fought when facing punchers. He tends to move a lot, jabbing and jumping in to land punches.

Terence does not stay in one place or attack in everyday flashes. He fought Errol Spence aggressively, but that was because he was fighting a guy who was a shell of his former self after his car accident.

To agree or not?

“It would be a little over a year (13 months). You have to be very careful if you’re going to take a fight above 160 pounds because it’s a new weight range,” Chris Mannix said on his YouTube channel about Terence Crawford needing to be careful as he tunes up to stay sharp for his September fight against Canelo Alvarez.

It is doubtful that Crawford will take a risk by taking a tune-up at super middleweight to get his feet wet before he fights Canelo in September. If Terence does fight in the weight class, it will be at a catchweight, probably a middleweight going up to 163 or 164 in weight.

I could see Crawford fighting one of these middleweights at a catch weight of around 164: Aaron McKenna, Liam Smith, Austin Williams or Kyrone Davis. Those guys are no threat to beat Crawford, and they are low at middleweight.

“I only fought once at 154. I’m sure he can put on weight. He is a tall guy. I’m sure he can fill out his frame well enough,” Mannix said of Crawford. “You have to be careful who you choose. You can’t pick a puncher. You can’t pick anyone really dangerous. You can’t risk that bread (for Canelo fight).

“Remember when Oscar (De La Hoya) fought Stevie Forbes before he fought Mayweather?” Mannix said.

It would be a shock if Crawford were to take any set-up fight because he wouldn’t want to risk the money for the Canelo fight, and he’s comfortable fighting once a year.

Crawford hasn’t been active in five years, and he certainly isn’t going to now that he’s about to get a career-high retirement payday against Alvarez.