Terence Crawford responds to claims he retired to avoid Jaron ‘Boots’ Ennis

“I’m 10 steps ahead of him,” Crawford told Sean Zittel about Jaron Ennis. “I’m 10 steps ahead of him in cleverness.”

Crawford praised Ennis as “a tremendous talent” and “a threat to anybody,” but quickly shifted to what he saw as the differences between them.

“I can see the holes in his game, and I can see the openings and opportunities that I’ll have because A, I feel like I hit harder than Xander. B, I’m a lot sharper than Xander. C, I’m a lot faster than Xander.”

He said the opportunities Zayas missed against Ennis would have been enough for him to take control of the fight.

“When I capitalize, everybody knows I’m probably one of the best counter punchers ever,” Crawford said.

Despite the detailed breakdown, Crawford repeatedly insisted that his career was over.

“I’m retired. I’m happily retired,” he said. “This is Boots’ era. I wish him nothing but the best.”

Crawford also acknowledged one topic that still bothers him.

“When you say, ‘Oh, he’ll knock out Terence Crawford,’ or ‘Terence Crawford dodged him,’ or ‘Terence Crawford retired because of him,’ it pisses me off sometimes. But at the same time, that’s just the game.

Those comments are unlikely to end the debate. Crawford retired as the undisputed super middleweight champion after defeating Canelo Alvarez, but some fans remain unconvinced that walking away was the right decision while a lucrative showdown with Ennis remained available.

Many fans also look to Crawford’s last two performances as proof that time has begun to catch up with him. Israil Madrimov repeatedly found a home for his right hand despite having relatively little professional experience, while Canelo Alvarez remained competitive despite fighting in bursts for much of their bout. Those performances led some observers to question whether the 38-year-old Crawford would be able to hold off a younger, faster and more ruthless Ennis for 12 rounds.

Crawford clearly disagrees. Even as he insisted he had nothing left to prove, he left little doubt that he still believed his boxing IQ would have been enough to defeat the fighter many now see as the sport’s next dominant champion.