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Trainer Stephen Edwards believes Terence Crawford has enough size, power, conditioning and technical skills to move up to 168 and defeat unified super middleweight champion Canelo Alvarez.
Edwards thinks Crawford (41-0, 31 KOs) couldn’t beat David Benavidez, David Morrell, Artur Beterbiev or Dmitry Bivol. These guys are too big and too technical for the 37-year-old Crawford. But the 34-year-old Canelo (62-2-2, 39 KOs) is starting to show signs of age, and is a winner for Crawford.
Vulnerable champion
Canelo will be 35 years old on July 18 and has failed to eliminate his last six opponents. His last knockout was three years ago against Caleb Plant on November 6, 2021.
The Mexican star has not indicated that he will fight Crawford, and will not accept the match if he does not feel he can win. His net worth is estimated at $250 million. So the money that Turki Alalshikh could offer Alvarez would not induce him to take the Crawford fight unless he wanted to. He already has enough mass to live richly for 20 lifetimes, and can continue to earn many millions per fight, with easy opposition.
“Yes, I think he can get to 168 and fight certain people. Do I think he can fight Benavidez or Morrell? No, they are too big, too skilled and too tall. That would be a lot to overcome,” said Stephen Edwards Fighthypetalking about Terence Crawford being too small to fight Benavidez or Morrell at super middleweight.
“Canelo comes from the smaller weights and is the same height as Crawford. I actually think Crawford is a bit taller. Crawford’s arms are much longer and has a much better gas tank. I’ve never seen Crawford tired.
“Nowadays, Canelo we let guys find out that when he was on his best run, he usually stopped them. Now, he lets them go because he doesn’t have that extra boost in his gas tank. If Bud fought Canelo at 168, Bud would be full of calories. I could eat whatever I wanted at any time of the day,” Edwards said.
Crawford is also getting pretty old, at 37, and almost lost his debut at 154 against Israil Madrimov on August 3rd. He won’t be able to win rounds against Canelo with the weak shots he was landing against Madrimov. Those strikes looked weak compared to when he was fighting at 147, 140 and 135.
The judges will give Canelo the rounds against Crawford, even if he is outmatched. If Canelo’s shots are much harder, he will win the rounds. Crawford doesn’t hit as hard as Jermell Charlo or Erislandy Lara, and those guys were outmatched when it came to Canelo.
Genius at work?
“His energy levels would be out of whack. He’ll probably go in the ring at 159 or 160 pounds. You don’t have to go in at 168 just because that’s the weight limit. He’s got to be quick in this fight,” Edwards said of Crawford .
“I told him (Crawford), ‘That fight you fought that night (against Viktor Postol at 140, eight years ago on July 23, 2016), that’s the fight that could beat Canelo.'” He smiled a little . I think Bud is a genius, and sometimes when you’re a genius, you don’t know you’re a genius. He has the ability to make adjustments in fights.”
The fight against Viktor Postol was a long time ago when Crawford was 28 years old. Now 37 years old, he doesn’t look as young, fast or mobile as he did in the fight against Postol. Crawford has aged. So comparing this version of Crawford to the one he fought against Postol to use as an argument for why Canelo will win is pointless. This version of Crawford no longer exists.
That was another person. If he was a monster puncher like Artur Beterbiev, it wouldn’t be a big deal if Crawford wasn’t as young as he used to be. He is not a great puncher and wins his fights by speed, reflexes and boxing skills. His current physical condition won’t be enough to beat Canelo, and the judges won’t do him any favors.
“I don’t think I can beat guys like Bivol and Beterbiev. I think it’s too much, but Canelo,” Edwards said. “He’s a great fighter, but my eyes tell me he’s slowing down a little bit. The Canelo that fought Berlanga. Three years ago, Canelo would knock out Berlanga. This It’s not a fight. This is a public execution.
“The fact that he let Berlanga go far. He let Munguia go far. He let Charlo go far. Bud’s Movement, Conditioning and Strength. Bud is much stronger than people think. I’m not saying he’s stronger than Canelo. He is strong enough. It’s not a weightlifting competition,” Edwards said.
