Terence Crawford is keeping his name out of the headlines. With no warm-up fight scheduled ahead of his potential clash with Canelo Álvarez, the American is concentrating on increasing his body mass and physically adapting to a different weight class.
However, he is also spending time talking about his hypothetical next opponent, Canelo. Crawford is set to face Saúl “Canelo” Álvarez in Las Vegas in September, provided the Mexican beats William Scull on May 3 in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.
But that wasn’t the only topic of conversation on this occasion, as he also talked about his great legacy in boxing, something he is very proud of because he earned it in his own way, without relying on anyone else to establish himself at the top of the sport.
Everyone has a fight that puts them at the top of their legacy, like Muhammad Ali when he beat Sonny Liston, Oscar de la Hoya‘s knockout of Chavez, and Mayweather crushing the Golden Boy boss. Everyone has a moment that marks an era in boxing, but Crawford doesn’t, and he knows who’s to blame.
Crawford rose to the top without anyone’s help
Terence Crawford forged his legend with sweat and tenacity, without relying on a single epic fight to define his era. Now, looking back, his chest swells with pride at having risen to the top with fierce consistency, establishing himself as an undisputed titan of boxing, an eternal figure in the sport’s history.
In an interview with Shannon Sharpe, “Bud” had no problem saying that he doesn’t have a fight with an opponent that changed his legacy, pointing to Pacquiao for avoiding him at a time that would have meant a lot to his career.
“I didn’t count on Manny Pacquiao, Miguel Cotto, Sugar Shane Mosley and those guys. They were boxing figures that could pass the torch to him. Nobody passed the torch to Terence Crawford,”Bud said in the interview.
“I made my own way. I didn’t take advantage of any boxer. I fought my way to the top.”
At this point in his career, Crawford believes he has earned that role through his hard work in the ring. He sees the challenge of fighting Canelo as a way to silence his critics, as he has repeatedly said that it is not about money or records.
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