Shakur Stevenson believes that 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 has said 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 with his best shots. Madrimov seemed to be doing more dangerous, and was not even loaded with his punches as usual.
“The easy job “For Bud?
“I’ve been saying this for years. I’m probably the first one to say this, even before Terence said this. I’ve always thought his (Crawford) style versus Canelo, I think he beats Canelo,” Shakur Stevenson told talkSport Boxing about his belief that Crawford will beat Canelo. “I’m not saying it’s going to be an easy fight, but he can make it a very easy fight.”
“I met Terence in Dubai, and he’s really fatter. He’s thickened recently. He’s 38,” said Gareth A. Davies about Crawford looking bigger. “It’s thickened.”
“That’s another thing. I don’t think Canelo walks because of his punches. Terence can punch, and that goes for any weight class,” Shakur said.
The way Shakur makes it sound, Crawford will be in the pocket and going to war with Canelo in September. That’s not realistic, given how Crawford has traditionally fought when facing punchers. He tends to move around a lot, kicking and jumping into punches on the ground.
Terence does not stay in one place or attack in all-out blitzes. He fought aggressively against Errol Spence, but that was because he was fighting a guy who was a shell of his former self after his car crash.
To tune-up, or not?
“It would be a little more than a year (13 months). You have to be very careful if you are going to take a fight above 160 lbs, because it is a new range of weight,” said Chris Mannix on his. YouTube channel that Terence Crawford needs to pay attention to when he takes a tune-up to stay strong for his September fight against Canelo Alvarez.
It’s doubtful that Crawford will take a risk by taking a tune-up against a super-middleweight to get his feet wet before fighting Canelo in September. If Terence fights in the weight class, it will be at a catchweight, probably against a middleweight coming in at 163 or 164.
I can see Crawford fighting one of these middleweights at a catchweight around 164: Aaron McKenna, Liam Smith, Austin Williams, or Kyrone Davis. Those guys aren’t a threat to beat Crawford, and they’re ranked low at middleweight.
“He’s only fought once at 154. I’m sure he can make weight. He’s a long guy. I’m sure he can fill his frame pretty well,” Mannix said of Crawford. “You have to be careful who you pick. You can’t be picking a puncher. You can’t be picking anybody really dangerous. You can’t risk that bread (for the Canelo fight).
“Remember when Oscar (De La Hoya) fought Stevie Forbes before he fought Mayweather?” Mannix said.
It would be a shock if Crawford took a tune-up fight because he didn’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 pension payment from Alvarez.
