Terence Crawford tests himself once again on Saturday night by moving up to super-welterweight and facing undefeated WBA Champion, Israil Madrimov.
It will be the fourth division in which the man from Omaha has competed and, he hopes, the fourth in which he will become top dog. The question remains though, even despite his unquestionably elite skillset, what is the ceiling for his weight?
Madrimov, who had an impressive amateur run, is undefeated in 10 contests and packs a heavy punch backed by a solid chin. Although a big betting underdog in this defence, there’s no doubt that he’s a healthy, bulky 154 pounder.
Fans recently praised his physique, with some branding him ‘The Incredible Hulk’ after seeing pictures from camp and wondering if there could be an upset on the cards. Although the Uzbek fighter does have size and youth on his side, there’s very little difference in height and ‘Bud’ boasts the longer reach.
In a head-to-head interview conducted by DAZN, Crawford has now commented on the difference in bulk. He said he’s used to being the smaller man but size doesn’t matter when the first bell rings.
“He bigger than me. Everybody bigger than me, but come fight time I always had the ability to show that I was stronger. Bigger don’t mean stronger. It’s just his body type. I’m very lean, my muscle is very compact. That don’t have nothing to do with the ability and skills come fight time.”
Despite his confidence, fans will keep a keen eye on any small differences in form that come with this new division – will his power continue to carry up? Will he be as impressive in the clinch?
The questions are pertinent not just for ‘Bud’s chances against Madrimov but his future hopes of a fight against super-middleweight champion Saul ‘Canelo‘ Alvarez – it has been confirmed that an offer will be made to the Mexican if he wins on Saturday in Los Angeles.
