Andre Ward is still pushing for unified super middleweight champion Canelo Alvarez to fight 154-pounder Terence Crawford because he thinks the Nebraska native could “outbox” the Mexican star. Ward doesn’t understand why Canelo (62-2-2, 39 KOs) won’t give the 37-year-old Crawford (41-0, 31 KOs) a shot.
Should Canelo Fight Crawford?
Canelo has already said it’s not a fight he’s interested in because it’s a no-win type of match, where he’s criticized no matter what happens. The only one that comes out of the fight in a great position is Crawford, who wouldn’t be criticized if he loses because Canelo fights two weight classes above him and is much heavier.
Ward says nothing about Crawford not showing initiative to move up to 168 and beat the top fighters to earn a title shot against Canelo.
Why Isn’t Crawford Earning the Fight?
People have to earn things through hard work, and Ward isn’t pressing Crawford to move up to 168 and earn the fight against Canelo by beating these contenders:
– Christian Mbilli
– Diego Pacheco
– Osleys Iglesias
– Jaime Munguia
– Caleb Plant
If Crawford were hungry, he could fight all five of those guys in the next year and be knocking on Canelo’s door for a world title shot by early 2026. Why isn’t Crawford doing that? Is he afraid of losing to one or all of those fighters and being weeded out of the Canelo sweepstakes?
Crawford is coming off a close 12-round unanimous Decision in his debut at 154 against 11-fight novice Israil Madrimov on August 3rd. He barely won that fight in his first fight at junior middleweight, and he hasn’t fought any of the other killers at 154, like Bakhram Murtazaliev and Vergil Ortiz Jr.
Crawford has never been at 160, and that would be a logical step to work his way to fighting Canelo. Why isn’t Crawford fighting IBF and WBO middleweight champion Janibek Alimkhanuly? Does Crawford feel he doesn’t have to work for things in life? Other fighters are working, so why isn’t he?
“The game is different. There’s a lot of strategy going on with guys not taking fights and why they’re not taking fights,” said Andre Ward to Stephen A. Jackson’s YouTube channel. “I like the Terence Crawford vs. Canelo Alvarez fight.
The game is different. And Crawford is part of it. Why isn’t he taking risky fights against Murataliev and Vergil Jr. at 154? Why isn’t Crawford fighting Janibek at 160 or David Benavidez? There are fighters that aren’t taking fights, and Crawford is one of them. Ward just isn’t calling him out for ducking guys.
“A lot of people say I’m crazy for saying that Terence Crawford can win that fight. My thing is, if you don’t think Terence Crawford can outbox Canelo Alvarez, you may have to check your eyes,” said Ward.
The 37-year-old Crawford barely beat Madrimov in his debut at 154, and it’s obvious from that fight that he’s not going to cut the mustard if he jumps two weight classes to fight Canelo at 168.
Crawford could make things easier on Canelo if he moved up to 168 and beat Iglesias, Pacheco, Mbilli, Plant, and Munguia. If he can beat those guys or David Morrell, he’d likely get a title shot against Canelo.
Canelo’s History of Fighting Smaller Opponents
“There’s a reason why Canelo isn’t jumping into that fight because he fought Amir Khan, which was two weight classes below him [correction: one weight class]. So, the weight thing isn’t that big a deal,” said Ward.
Khan only went up one weight class, not two, when Canelo fought him in 2016. Canelo knew Khan would come to fight. With Crawford, he already knows he’s going to use the Mayweather blueprint by boxing and moving all night long.
His trainer, Brian ‘BoMac’ McIntyre, already said he’s going to have Crawford use the Mayweather game plan. In hindsight, BoMac should have kept his yap shut because he gave Canelo even more of a reason not to fight him.
“That’s a fight [Canelo vs. Crawford] I’d really like to see. That’s a dangerous fight for both fighters for different reasons. That’s a fight I would like to see, and that’s an all-time great fight that people [would like to see],” said Ward.
“The assumption is from the public that he’s [Canelo] 30 lbs heavier. That would be a great classic fight,” said Ward,
