Saturday sees the most prestigious and important boxing match since the record-breaking 2015 clash between Floyd Mayweather and Manny Pacquiao, as the sport looks to crown an undisputed welterweight king.
Unified Champion Errol Spence Jr. (28-0, 22 KOs) will put his IBF, WBA and WBC belts on the line against WBO Champion Terence Crawford (39-0, 30 KOs) when the two meet at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas (Showtime PPV, 8:00 p.m. ET) in a long-awaited superfight presented by Premier Boxing Champions.
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As we near that welterweight pinnacle, let’s take a closer look at the biggest storylines.
1. Use after use: It doesn’t get any bigger
How tall is Spence Crawford? This undefeated champion pair may not have the same global fame as Mayweather and Pacquiao, but the hype surrounding Saturday’s fight was fueled by a similar five-year string of debates and mythical matchmaking until the business side finally hit the nail on the head. The difference, however, is that Spence and Crawford are closer to their actual fight bests than their welterweight predecessors at 33 and 35, respectively. The stakes of both fights are also similar, as this same-night fight aims to determine who is the best current welterweight, the best pound-for-pound boxer in the sport, and the best fighter of his own divisional era. This will also mark the first time in the four-belt era that a truly undisputed champion will be crowned in the prestigious 147-pound class.
2. This fight stands up to historical comparisons quite well
While Spence has spent his entire 11-year pro career weighing 147 pounds, Crawford has gradually progressed, earning titles in three weight classes (including being named the first undisputed four-belt champion in junior welterweight history). But it didn’t take long for Crawford to burst onto the welterweight scene in 2018 to realize that not only was a clash between the two inevitable, but that the sport of boxing was dealing with two truly great fighters of all time who could have thrived in any era. Given the hype surrounding that fight, it’s also not out of the question to place Spence-Crawford among the great welterweight unions of the last half-century that made headlines in all sports: Ray Leonard-Thomas Hearns (1981), Oscar De La Hoya-Felix Trinidad (1999), and Mayweather-Pacquiao. The difference between then and now might be that those three fights never produced immediate sequels, and only Leonard-Hearns even had a rematch, which was eight years later and three weight classes up (leading to a controversial split-draw result). However, both Spence and Crawford have signed bilateral rematch agreements, giving either party the opportunity to secure a second fight if they wish, regardless of the result this weekend. The fact that Crawford signed a three-fight deal with PBC to secure that fight only adds to the likely confirmation that these two will (at least) meet again.
3. Spence-Crawford presents the perfect contrast in style
While both boxers are versatile and versatile enough to win a fight any way they can, the fundamentals of what makes them great couldn’t be more different. A badass southpaw, Spence is as orthodox as it gets when it comes to the style of pressure that makes him so effective. However, Spence has just about every tool a great boxer-puncher could want and need, including a heavy punch, a huge gas tank, a great chin, and the ability to pack punches from any distance. Though Spence once tried to prove a point (and succeeded) by dominating undefeated Mikey Garcia by only taking him out from range, he’s at his best when he’s on hold of his opponent, steadily breaking through their defenses with heavy body shots and constant forward pressure. That’s exactly what he did last time out against Yordenis Ugas in their unification bout in April 2022, which ended in a 10th-round TKO after Spence broke his orbital bone. Crawford, on the other hand, is the duo’s abstract painter as a switch magician who uses length, speed and mind-bending moves to confuse his opponents. Once Crawford switched to a southpaw, which he did in the second round, his opponents were routinely done the rest of the way. Crawford is arguably the more talented pure boxer of the pair, but wouldn’t have this impeccable record if he didn’t have the backbone to use as a bad finisher after injuring his opponent.
4. It’s a miracle this fight even happened
It often takes a lot of luck and luck for a superfight that has taken so many years to actually happen. For Mayweather-Pacquiao, it meant enduring two “PacMan” losses, including a hefty one-punch knockout loss to her rival Juan Manuel Marquez in 2012 that could have derailed the fight entirely. This fight also benefited from a few chance encounters that helped seal the deal, including the two fighters meeting at an NBA game in Miami and a Los Angeles waiter who convinced then-CBS Corp CEO Les Moonves to act as middle man. This weekend’s fight almost fell flat last year when Crawford, who had spent years crossing boxing’s political street with Top Rank, decided against signing with PBC for a one-off fight for up-and-coming promoter BLK Prime. But that all pales in comparison to what Spence went through physically just to get here. Spence, who was not wearing a seat belt, infamously overturned his Ferrari and was ejected from the vehicle in a drunken accident in 2019, making him lucky enough to survive with only minor injuries (including a knocked out tooth). After being sidelined for most of 2020 before returning to Danny Garcia, Spence then underwent surgery to repair a retinal detachment that got him out of a pay-per-view fight against Pacquiao in 2021 and once again put his future in jeopardy.
5. Talk is cheap, but intensity and competitiveness pay the bills
Sure, at the press conference held on both coasts in June to promote this fight, there were some unexpected bursts of enthusiasm from both fighters. But it was never a duel based on superficial trash talk and bad blood between the competitors. And the best news is, that doesn’t have to be the case for this duel to be considered one of the greatest superfights of this century. What we learned about the two boxers during pre-training, which included a two-part Showtime “All Access” documentary series, was how much each boxer respects the other and how much potential there is in creating such a cold competition between them. Both fighters have been talking about how ‘old school’ this fight feels for the past few months and the good news for the paying audience this weekend is that it’s expected to progress into exciting action. For all the disappointed casual boxing fans who paid $100 PPV for Mayweather-Pacquiao and were then furious when the two delivered such a technical boxing match without much risk taking or drama, Spence and Crawford have both been very vocal about their plan to fight each other to win. Knowing the temperament, tenacity, and firepower of these two, it’s exceedingly good news for those still unsure about ordering a fight that almost screams its promise of full-throttle entertainment.