Terence Crawford has a realistic expectation of what his body will allow him to do.
The three-division titlist from Omaha, Nebraska, is coming off a career-best win over Errol Spence Jr. last Saturday at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas to become the undisputed welterweight champion.
Now speculation has turned to Crawford’s next move. A rematch could be in the works—if Spence decides to press one—and it could take place at 154, which is Spence’s preference. Crawford himself has indicated he would be open to moving up to 154 as well.
But as far as moving up beyond 154 pounds? Not so fast, says Crawford, who started his career as a lightweight and is fast approaching 36 years of age.
“I would say 154 [is my highest weight class], realistically,” Crawford told Peter Rosenberg and Ebro Darden on Hot 97. “Them boys get big up there. Them boys get big up there and I’m not a person that toot my own horn too loud to be able to say, ‘Oh I could beat the world.’ I understand there are weight classes for a reason and I respect the weight classes. Yeah, I think 154 will be my max, given the age, I’m about to be 36 years old in September. Gotta take that into consideration as well.”
Crawford (40-0, 31 KOs) indicated in the same interview that one of his top priorities is to face Jermell Charlo, who holds all the belts in the 154-pound division. Charlo is moving up two divisions to challenge the undisputed 168-pound champion, Canelo Alvarez, in September. (The WBO announced this week that Charlo would be stripped of his 154-pound title once he steps into the ring against Alvarez, which would allow mandatory challenger Tim Tszyu to be elevated to champion.)
Crawford and Charlo traded words during Crawford’s fight with Spence.
But beyond Charlo (and a rematch with Spence), Crawford suggested he does not see too many other interesting challenges on the horizon and discounted, moreover, a fight with Alvarez as simply being too unrealistic.
“Charlo holds all the belts at 154, I hold all the belts at 147,” Crawford said. “I don’t see nobody else on that level of Terence Crawford and Errol Spence, besides Canelo, but he fights at 168 plus. I don’t see me and him fighting.”
Sean Nam is the author of Murder on Federal Street: Tyrone Everett, the Black Mafia, and the Last Golden Age of Philadelphia Boxing.