Terence Crawford is just eight days out from making his debut at super-middleweight, facing a boxing icon in Canelo Alvarez who has never been defeated in the division.
‘Bud’ Crawford campaigned at welterweight from 2018 until 2023. In 2024, he moved up to 154lbs to beat Israil Madrimov and become a four-weight world champion. He will now pack on a further 14 pounds to face Canelo on September 13 in Las Vegas.
Though the American’s skillset is unquestioned, how he handles the new weight is the major talking point ahead of the fight. If the eye test is anything to go by, he looks to have filled in extremely well, as per the latest post on his Instagram account.
Fans were impressed by the physique of the undefeated switch-hitter from Omaha, Nebraska. One poster on X said he looks like a light-heavyweight. Others on Instagram said he was set to ‘make history’ and that ‘Canelo ain’t working as hard as this.’
Whether Crawford’s power carries up with him is as intriguing a question as they come. When he beat Madrimov on points at super-welterweight, it ended an eleven fight stoppage streak. Pair that with Canelo having one of the best chins in the business, having never touched the canvas in 67 fights, make most feel that ‘Bud’s only route to victory is over the 12 round distance.
Should he see his hand raised, he will become male boxing’s first four-belt, three-weight undisputed champion. Alvarez is determined to keep hold of his belts, however, and has a lot to prove after a relatively poor showing against William Scull last time out.
