Jaron Ennis thinks the upcoming fight between Terence Crawford and Canelo Alvarez will be a close one. The IBF welterweight champion shared his thoughts on the match-up set for September.
Crawford, now 37, has made big moves in boxing lately. He became the undisputed champion at 147 pounds by beating Errol Spence last July. He then won a world title at 154 pounds against Israil Madrimov. Now, he's jumping up to super middleweight to face Canelo, the undisputed champion in that division.
Ennis, a rising star who came up after Crawford left the welterweight division, shared his views with YSM Sports Media.
"It's a good fight, a 50-50 fight, and I guess it's a fight everybody wants to see."
But Ennis thinks the weight difference could be a challenge for Crawford.
"It's going to be a little difficult. He's going to have to put on an extra 14lbs, so he could be slower. You've got to add more weight and gain more muscle so it's harder but we'll see on fight night."
Crawford might need to change his style for this fight. Ennis suggested:
"Be smart, take his time, box and move. Don't sit there and let him drop bombs on him."
As for Canelo, Ennis thinks he'll need to use his size advantage:
"I feel like Canelo will be pressing, everything behind the stick, catch him trying to pull out, pull back, cut the ring off, things like that. He going to have to bully the smaller guy, don't let him dictate nothing, show him that's your weight class."
Crawford has been preparing for this jump in weight. He said he's currently at 186 pounds, which is well above the 168-pound limit for super middleweight. It's a big change for Crawford, who has won titles as low as lightweight (135 pounds).
The fight is set for September. Crawford has wanted this chance to face Canelo for a while. Now, we'll see if he can pull off the upset against the bigger champion.
