Terence Crawford hints at weight switch to make further history in next fight
Terence Crawford’s next steps remain unclear, but he is considering all his options.
The 37-year-old put on a punch-perfect display on Saturday night in Las Vegas to dethrone undisputed super middleweight king Canelo Alvarez.
Several pre-eminent voices insisted Crawford, who was moving up two weight classes, didn’t have the size to beat Canelo.
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However, Crawford proved them wrong by scoring a convincing, unanimous decision win that saw the modern great stand toe to toe with his larger adversary in portions.
In victory, he becomes the first male three-weight undisputed champion in the four-belt era.
He also joins an elite group of five-weight world champions that includes Floyd Mayweather after successfully picking up hardware at lightweight, super lightweight, welterweight, super welterweight and super middleweight.
The one division he skipped en route to achieving the remarkable feat is middleweight.
And although Crawford is yet to make a decision on whether he will fight again following his career-best win, he hinted at the possibility of making a splash at 160lbs.
Speaking to the Netflix broadcast panel after the fight, Crawford said: “My gut says the same thing.
“I’m going to sit down with my team and discuss what is next in the future for Terence Crawford.
“But who knows, I might go down to 160lbs.”
Who are the champions in the middleweight division?
The middleweight division is considered to be one of the weaker weight classes in boxing right now.
Unified IBF and WBO champion Janibek Alimkhanuly is considered by most to be the best fighter in the division.
Meanwhile, Carlos Adames, who boxed to a contentious draw against Hamzah Sheeraz in February, is the WBC titleholder, and Erislandy Lara, boxing’s oldest world champion, holds the WBA’s version of the world title.
There are several talented up-and-comers in the division, such as Cuban amateur standout Yoenlis Hernandez, World Championship bronze medallist Troy Isley of the United States, and Irish technician Aaron McKenna.
However, the weight class is wide open, providing Crawford with the perfect opportunity to launch a smash-and-grab mission.
If ‘Bud’ were to successfully add middleweight gold to his glittering résumé, then he would tie Oscar De La Hoya for the second most weight classes conquered with six.
Only boxing’s lone eight-weight world champion, Manny Pacquiao, boasts more belts.
