"Crawford took my punches well and can hit hard himself. Because when he landed cleanly, I felt it. And he has good accuracy," said Israil Madrimov before the Saturday fight between Terence Crawford (41-0, 31 KO) and Saul Alvarez (63-2-2, 39 KO).
Many are writing Crawford off in this fight based on his previous bout with Madrimov. Although the American won, the Uzbek fighter gave him quite a bit of trouble. Madrimov himself holds his recent opponent in high regard.
"This is the most intriguing fight I can imagine right now, and thatâs why Iâm looking forward to it. Canelo will be bigger, but in my opinion, Crawford is the best boxer in the world. He knows how to throw beautiful combinations, he is sharp and counters well. He feels comfortable at close, medium, and long range. And he can change positions during the fight without losing his qualities," said Madrimov.
"Crawford is a very versatile fighter, but he will have to face the king of the 76.2 kg weight class. Excess muscle mass could hurt Crawford. I wouldnât advise doing that, and he looked very big in the photographs. However, I donât think Terence will weigh significantly more on fight day than he did the day before the weigh-in. That would be a mistake on his part. For me, the chances of winning are 50/50, and Crawford definitely has a chance to win. The main thing is how he reacts to Caneloâs power and punches. The Mexican will want to break him both physically and mentally. However, I wouldnât be surprised if Terence surprises him with a few things and shows Alvarez something he has never seen in the ring," Madrimov added.
