Trainer Stephen Edwards believes Terence Crawford has enough size, strength, conditioning and technical skills to move up to 168 and defeat unified super middleweight champion Canelo Alvarez.
Edwards thinks Crawford (41-0, 31 KOs) couldn’t beat David Benavidez, David Morrell, Artur Beterbiev or Dmitry Bivol. Those guys are too big and too technical for the 37-year-old Crawford. But the 34-year-old Canelo (62-2-2, 39 KOs) is starting to show signs of age, and he’s beatable for Crawford.
Vulnerable champion
Canelo turns 35 on July 18, and he has failed to knock out his last six opponents. His last knockout came three years ago against Caleb Plant on November 6, 2021.
The Mexican star has not indicated that he will fight Crawford, and he will not agree to the bout unless he feels he can win. His net worth is estimated at $250 million. So whatever money Turki Alalshikh could offer Alvarez wouldn’t tempt him to take the Crawford fight unless he wanted to. He already has enough dough to live richly for 20 lifetimes, and he can continue to make many millions per fight, with easy opposition.
“Yeah, I think he can go up to 168 and fight certain people. Do I think he can fight Benavidez or Morrell? No, they are too big, too skilled and too tall. It will be a lot to overcome,” said Stephen Edwards Battle hypeTalk about Terence Crawford being too small to fight Benavidez or Morrell at super middleweight.
“Canelo comes from the smaller weights and is the same height as Crawford. I actually think Crawford is a bit taller. Crawford’s arms are much longer, and he has the much better gas tank. I’ve never seen Crawford tired.
“Canelo is letting our guys off the hook these days that when he was on his best run he would usually stop them. Now he lets them off the hook because he doesn’t have that extra pressure in his gas tank. If Bud were to fight Canelo at 168, Bud would be full of calories. He will be able to eat whatever he wants to eat at any time of the day,” Edwards said.
Crawford is also getting pretty old, at 37, and he almost lost his debut at 154 to Israil Madrimov on August 3rd. He won’t be able to win rounds against Canelo with the poor punches he landed against Madrimov. Those shots looked weak compared to when he fought at 147, 140 and 135.
The judges will give Canelo the round against Crawford even if he is outworked. If Canelo’s punches are much harder, he will win the rounds. Crawford doesn’t hit as hard as Jermell Charlo or Erislandy Lara, and those guys are outmatched power-wise against Canelo.
Genius at work?
“His energy levels would be off the hook. He will probably get in the ring at 159 or 160 lbs. There is no need to get in at 168 just because that is the weight limit. He has to be quick in that fight,” Edwards said of Crawford.
“I told him (Crawford), ‘That fight you fought that night (against Viktor Postol at 140, eight years ago on July 23, 2016), that’s the fight that can beat Canelo.’ He smiled quite a bit. I think Bud is a genius, and sometimes, when you’re a genius, you don’t know you’re a genius. He has the ability to make adjustments in fights.”
The fight against Viktor Postol was a long time ago when Crawford was 28 years old. Now 37, he doesn’t look as young, fast or mobile as he did in the Postol fight. Crawford has aged. So, comparing this version of Crawford to the one that Postol fought to use as an argument for why he will beat Canelo makes no sense. That version of Crawford no longer exists.
It was another person. If he was a monstrous puncher like Artur Beterbiev, it wouldn’t be a big deal that Crawford isn’t as young as he once was. He is not a great puncher and wins his fights on speed, reflexes and boxing skills. It’s not going to be enough in his current physical condition to beat Canelo, and the judges won’t do him any favors.
“I don’t think he can beat guys like Bivol and Beterbiev. I think it’s too much, but Canelo,” Edwards said. “He’s a great fighter, but my eyes tell me he’s slowing down a bit. The Canelo who fought Berlanga. Three years ago, Canelo would knock out Berlanga. This is not a fight. It is a public execution.
“The fact that he let Berlanga go the distance. He let Munguia go the distance. He let Charlo go the distance. Bud’s movement, conditioning and strength. Bud is much stronger than people realize. I’m not saying he’s stronger than Canelo. He is strong enough. This is not a weightlifting competition,” Edwards said.
