Terence Crawford recently became a four-weight world champion. Now, the boxing world wonders what's next for the Omaha native.
Crawford, a 37-year-old switch-hitter, has been on a tear lately. He moved up from welterweight and beat Errol Spence Jr to become the undisputed welterweight champion. He didn't stop there. In his first fight at 154 pounds, Crawford took down the previously-undefeated Israil Madrimov to snatch the WBA belt.
With these achievements under his belt, Crawford's got a few options on the table. He could go for unification bouts at his new weight. There's also talk about a defense against Vergil Ortiz Jr or a showdown with Jaron 'Boots' Ennis.
But Crawford's got his eyes on an even bigger prize. He's looking to jump up two divisions to face Saul 'Canelo' Alvarez, the unified super-middleweight champion. It's a bold move, but Crawford's never been one to shy away from a challenge.
Robert Garcia, who trains Vergil Ortiz Jr, shared some interesting insights about Crawford's mindset. In a recent interview, Garcia said:
"Look, Crawford's a smart man. He's already accomplished. He already did a lot. He doesn't need to challenge himself. He doesn't need to prove nothing to nobody. I've talked to him personally and my feeling is he wants that big fight against Canelo, and if he doesn't get that he might never fight again. He doesn't need anybody to push him to take a challenge that he doesn't need. He's already accomplished it. I don't see him pleasing the fans cause they're telling him he needs to fight this guy, he needs to fight that guy."
Garcia believes Crawford is financially secure and is only looking for the biggest fight possible at this point. If the Canelo fight doesn't materialize, we might have seen the last of Crawford in the ring.
Canelo, for his part, seems to have softened his stance. He used to dismiss the idea of fighting Crawford, but now he's saying he'll listen to any offer that comes his way.
Crawford's got nothing left to prove. He's achieved more than most fighters could dream of. Now, it's all about that one big fight – or maybe it's time to hang up the gloves. Only Crawford knows for sure, and the boxing world is waiting to see what he'll do next.
