By Jeff Zimmerman at ringside
Photos: Emily Harney
WBO welterweight champ Terence “Bud” Crawford (40-0, 31 KOs) out of Omaha, NE blasted out WBC, IBF and WBA titleholder Errol “The Truth” Spence Jr. (28-1, 22 KOs) out of Dallas, TX to become the undisputed welterweight king on Saturday night in front of 19,990 at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas.
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Crawford dropped Spence three times, once in the second and twice in round seven before referee Harvey Dock waived it off in round nine after Crawford landed a barrage of power shots. The time of stoppage was 2:32 of round nine.
This was a fight for the ages, two undefeated, top five pound-for-pound fighters fighting for legacy.
Spence and Crawford used one round as a feel out round, but by round two there was no turning back and the fight was on. Spence worked the jab and did nice work to the body, but after missing on a shot inside, Crawford countered with a left and straight right that dropped Spence for the first time in the fight. Spence continued to work the body in round three, but Crawford was just waiting for his moment to counter and show off his blazing speed and power shots with both hands.
By round four, Crawford displayed his full arsenal and took control of the fight as he was firing on all cylinders and Spence seemed to have no answer.
Crawford had stated before the fight exactly what was to be expected.
““He’s gonna find out the same thing that everyone else finds out. He’s gonna say that on TV I look one way. In the ring he’s gonna be seeing three of me.”
In round seven, Crawford landed a counter right that put Spence on the canvas for the second time and Crawford smelled blood in the water. And right before the end of the round, Crawford fired a short, right uppercut and right hook to put Spence down again. By this point, Spence would need a miracle knockout as Crawford was in complete control and was looking to kill the self-proclaimed “Big Fish.”
In round nine, Crawford wobbled Spence, but the warrior in Spence kept fighting back, but could not hurt Crawford or slow him down.
After another barrage of punches by Crawford, referee Harvey Dock stopped the carnage and Crawford was now the undisputed welterweight champion of the world and #1 pound-for-pound king.
With his one-sided beatdown of “Man Down,” Crawford stamped his legacy as a generational talent on the biggest stage in the biggest fight boxing has seen in many years.
Crawford and Spence knew coming in what a win would do for their respective legacies, calling this a “throwback” fight to the 80’s of the 4 Kings – Leonard, Duran, Hagler, Hearns.
Spence shared this sentiment leading up to the fight.
“People are gonna talk about this fight 30 or 40 years from now when you talk about legendary fights. They’re gonna talk about this fight the same way they talked about the ‘Four Kings’ era. There’s gonna be an amateur 20 years from now watching our fight on YouTube and saying man, I want to be in a fight like that.”
Crawford, who lives his life with that proverbial chip on his shoulder, predicted what was to come on Saturday night, as if the script was already written.
“Everything about me is better than Errol. When you look at what I do in the ring, it’s better than what he does. Come fight night, I’m going to prove every doubter wrong. I’m going to show that I’m the best fighter in the world.
“This is the Terence Crawford era. When you look at my body of work in each weight class, you can’t deny that. This is my era. I’ve never had a close fight. I’ve never had a fight where people thought I lost. I’ve looked spectacular every time.”
No one should ever doubt Crawford again after his dominating performance against Spence and in a fight for the ages of two undefeated champions fighting for legacy, Crawford showed on this night he was perhaps now in a class with the legendary Leonard, Duran, Hagler and Hearns.
In a post-fight interview with Jim Gray, Crawford had this to say about his performance:
“Nobody believed in me growing up. Thanks to Spence and team because without him this isn’t possible…undisputed means everything to me. They tried to blackball me, badmouth me, tried to keep me out and I kept praying to God and tonight I showed how great I am.”
“The main focus was to take away his jab, his best attribute.”
On Mike Tyson saying ringside that Crawford’s jab is a battering ram:
“We practice that. He’s durable, strong so we practice strong, powerful jabs to stop him in his tracks.”
Spence told Jim Gray in the ring he would like a rematch at 154.
Final round: As rumored, the legendary rapper Eminem took Crawford up on his offer for his ring walk. Although Eminem didn’t sing, his hit “Lose Yourself” played in the arena.
Wow. Amazing performance by Bud. P4P No.1 no dubt.
wow’s all round!
To me it is tied between Inoue and Crawford an No. 1 P4P
Naoya Inoue is definitely the #1 P4P fighter right now in boxing.
Inoue is definitely top 6. still a long way to go to be pfp #1. bud is #1 by a long shot.
not after Crawfords demolition
Hey Pinga agria, chica y podrida, to me Inoue was superb in his demolition of Fulton..
Now, what separate Inoue vs Bud was the quality of the opponent Fulton is not Spence.
We can see by the 3 dislikes that the PBC fanboys are still upset.
It’s funny, because after watching Inoue earlier, I thought there’s no way anyone in the World is better at the craft. Bud definitely had something to retort. Stylistically, they are both different but exceptional.
Had given Crawford an edge in this fight – did not think it would be this lopsided. Spence looked LOST
I expected Crawford to win, but not with that level of domination. Credit Spence, because he was really trying and showed heart… but he was completely outclassed. Bud was landing darn near everything he threw, and even the power behind his jab appeared to hurt Spence. It felt like Spence had no answer for Bud’s power, which was totally unexpected for me.
Wow. Just wow. That was an ass kicking
Wow. I thought he would win but he destroyed Spence. Unreal fighter.
WOW,just the way I imagined it
I am sure you did lol
“Impressive”, Spence babysat those belts for too long.
Stop the disrespect. He earned those titles the hard way and simple lost to the better fighter tonight.
Wow. After the first round Bud went beast mode, made Spence look very ordinary. The jab was busting him up and got the first knockdown. Total domination, don’t know who can beat bud. Would have loved to see Bud vs Gayweather
Enis can be a strong challenge to Crawford
Nah. Ennis is a good fighter for sure. But he’s not match for Crawford. Especially if he fights the way he fought in his last fight. Sure, he got the KO, but it wasn’t anything exceptional until that point.
We will have to see, if that fight ever happens
Perfect analysis! Boots too green, Bud on another level.
Ennis is a diamond in the rough. Not close to being a match for Crawford as of yet.
Boots is too green. He got skills, but he not ready for Bud. Bud is just to experienced and smart.
At 147, Bud was too busy and too accurate for Floyd. At 140 or 135, total different story. Plus, Floyd would have added Bud to the list of avoided fighters until Bud was well past his peak.
Floyd had to be past his as well……..because since his fight with Oscar, only 2 of his opponents were older. Otherwise, he was other by years than every single one of them. It’s not like his body stopped aging and waited for them to catch up
Gayweather? You must be about 12 years old lol
Nah! Gayweather woulda bought the judges, then ran all night!!
you better put some respect on floyd’s name. he dominated your boys canelo and pac and proved himself as the best ever.
Lot of people would disagree with you their, including myself. Best at his time yes. ALso I have him at number one all time in the Jr. Lightweight division. Always wondered also why he never went on to try to grab the middleweight title. I think he could have done it, as he beat both Canello and Cotto. Certainly he would not have been able to win Super Middle weight title.
Unbelievable. Wow. Crawford is completely on another level! Just sensational. Hands down, the best boxer today!
That was Ray Robinson without…Robinson being on his toes..THE PUNCH COMBOS…THE POISE..THE CALMNESS ON THE INSIDE OF THE POCKET..THE SHORT PUNCH COMBINATIONS…THE INNOVATION OF PUNCHES ON THE FLY..NOT ALI LIKE …NOT RAY LEONARD LIKE….RAY ROBINSON…that is the best stuff I have seen to date and I have studied all the great ones….WOW….Spence didn’t look the same…
Great analysis
Hopefully there isnt a rematch or if they do, maybe in a year or so at 154. Would like to see both fight for vacant belts at 154 and then fight again. Crawford could probably grab all the 154 belts if he wants them.
A rematch is completely unnecessary, at any weight, ever, between Crawford and Spence IMO. Crawford is his superior, and proved that emphatically tonight.
Just thinking about what Bud’s resume could look like if he manages to squeeze in Boots, Charlo for undisputed @154 (if Charlo doesn’t bolt the division), and maybe Tszyu before hanging up the gloves. Would be a nice potential string of wins before riding off into the sunset.
i think he should skip ennis…fight and beat charlo and tszyu. by then he’s about 37…will go down in the HOF among the top 5 pfp all time.
I don’t see the fanboys..Crawford is right there with Leonard as P4P..he’s clearly the greatest fighter last 10 years
There is no need to disrespect to elevate Crawford. Respect to both sides as everyone was classy. Crawford is on another level. Respec to Spence for spearheading this fight to happen.
Excellent points, sir. It was a battle between two richly deserving, highly accomplished pfp elites. the better man won and styles make fights. respect to both champions for putting it all on the line for us fans.
Did anyone else think Spence looked out of it before he even got into the ring? Bud was amazing but I’m not sure Spence should be fighting after the accident. Dream fight would be Crawford Vs Canelo at 157
I always thought Spence looked out of it before his fights. I think it’s just his demeanor. He just ran head first into a buzz saw tonight.
Yes, Spence looked spacey and his body language reeked of reluctance.. there is a perceptible change in his speech and his performance was that of a shopworn old fighter… in his post fight interview, he sounded even worse.. he looks unfocused and damaged to me.. I said it even before the fight.. I feel sorry for him…. Spence is done.. congratulations to Bud
I agree. As much as the sport……. The car crash a few years ago likely has a bit to do with it also
No one said boo about the car wreck after Spence dismantled Ugas
Agreed. Don’t disrespect Spence or Crawford, or their respective camps with these excuses. Spence looked ripped to shreds at the weigh in, 147 on the dot. He has a Trainer of the Year in his corner and was a unified three belt undefeated champion.
I’m sure he trained hard and that the professionals around him were all convinced that he was not diminished by the accident. If he were, then shame on them for putting him in the ring, but I don’t think that was the case.
Crawford was sharper and better and deserved the win and all the titles.
Spence got off his stool for the 8th and 9th and went in to face the fire.
He’s got plenty of “dog” in him, but he faced a superior opponent. That’s it.
That is what was thinking about before the fight, and I after seeing this I think its time for Errol to retire, because he is on a path to get seriously hurt.Crawford left no doubt about who is the boss.Best welter fight since Hearns/Leonard.
Yes he looks different. Sounding different after the right has more to do with the ass whooping he had just taken and was probably concussed. The struggle to make weight, the car accident and this fight permanently changed Spence. Another fight that was at least for years too late.
Didn’t want to say it…but Spence definitely not the same Rankit…heart still there…no excuses…Spence took an asswhupping!!!
Spence eyes yes, he looked weak probably lost too much weight regardless Crawford was on a different planet
He had not fought in 15 or 16 months, and before that around the same time, no match in 2021. You could tell he would not have minded if the fight had been stopped earlier. He just did not want to look like a quitter.
Yeah, Spence definitely looked out of it. His expression said it all. He looked super nervous and concerned for his well-being.
thought it would go either way….. but it only went Bud’s way….domination
I did not see the fight I had to leave home
I was told the fight was good and with this result Crawford is the best boxer today and one of the greatest all times
Is easy to see that he is a very solid fighter
But he needed to beat soencer in order to get full recognition
Great great boxer is Crawford
Weren’t you the same racist idiot that said you’re not interest in the fight because black guys are boring and this fight would be a borefest. Put that in your pipe and smoke it.
Yea but I like to recognize so I’m not racist I just know that black boxers run like chicken and is rare to see them engage in a fight
I think Mexicans are very boring ..throw a thousand punches toe to toe but nothing happens …I was never a fan of Marquez, barerra, morales fights ..string Chins but no 1 punch power .aside from Marquez when he evened playing field with manny by juicing also
Another unbeaten, carefully matched, Haymon hype job utterly exposed in one sided fashion. Broner, Thurman, Wilder, now Spence. Always seems to happen once these guys finally have to face someone that isn’t a fellow in-house fighter. The Charlos are the next to be sacrificed to Canelo back-to-back, which is the story PBC will go with to sell those mismatches (“Can Jermall avenge his twin brother’s Mexican Independence Day loss on Cinco de Mayo? Waste 99.99 to find out!”)
One fight down on my list. Two to go (Fury-Usyk & Beterbiev-Bivol), then after 38 years I’m done. TBH if it hadn’t been for Fury ending Wlad’s reign, I was done after the Pac-Mayweather farce.
Happy birthday to Bud’s Mama.
My prediction and analysis from a week ago:
“Spence has been very INACTIVE, enjoying celebrity life, and spending a great deal of time getting tattoos. He is strong, but robotic in his movements. He throws punches in predictable fashion and lacks creativity. He also has trouble with unconventional fighters, who throw punches at unexpected times in unconventional ways. This is why he had so much trouble with Shawn Porter. I don’t consider Spence the smarter of the two. His mind is not as quick as Crawfords. Crawford is a great deal more dangerous than Porter too.
Crawford is powerful hitter too. His strength is underestimated. He’s hungrier than Spence, has more to prove, since he gets less respect. His advantage is that he’s smarter, unconventional, and far more creative in his style. His timing is superb, and he has been busier in the ring than Spence. I think this fight will come down to how much punishment Spence can take, since he is more likely than Crawford to get tagged repeatedly with shots he never saw coming. Crawford can throw devastating shots at unexpected times in unconventional ways, something Spence is too robotic to do, and has difficulty defending.
Crawford by late stoppage or a decision.”
This fight went exactly according to my prediction, and it does feel good to be right. Congrats to Bud. I think he’s a great fighter and even finer as a person. He showed both qualities tonight.
Crawford made it look so easy. I am speechless.
Spence didn’t have any answers to Crawford accuracy, speed, timing, and power.
1st male boxer to be undisputed in 140 & 147.
Great fight by Bud Crawford hopefully the rematch doesn’t happen probably be the similar result Crawford vs Boot Ennis next or if up to 154 vs Tim Tszyu for the vacant WBO belt if or when Charlo get stripped
Tszyu is not ready for such fight. He needs to step up against someone lika Charlo and beat him. Still, if he would succeed, he’s too predictable for Crawfords creativity and skills.
154 is too much for Crawford, especially since he can still make 147 without a struggle as evidenced by the breakdown we just watched.
Not what Crawford said in the post fight interview
Was hoping for haglar / hearns. Spence is lazy and unmotivated. . Crawford got the eye of the tiger, he’s hungry and proved it.
So much for fighting for every paycheck. 1 is enough according to team spence
Crawford too sophisticated and versatile for the plodding fundamental Spence. Crawford is levels above Spence and I suspected this all along. No rematch is necessary. They don’t belong in the same ring.
No doubt about it, Crawford proved he’s one of the greatest welterweights in boxing history with that performance. That was nothing short of sensational! He took an exceptional fighter like Spence and not just dismantled him and dominated him but humiliated him. Spence had no answers for Crawford and was just beaten down. Don’t need to see this one again being it was so thoroughly one-sided.
Ask yourselves why many of Crawfords other opponents have fared better than Spence did tonight. Spence must have suffered some kind of neurological damage in those car accidents. He looked horrible tonight!
Good point Mike. Spence’s life outside of the ring and whatever shortcuts were taken to make weight brought out or accelerated the neurological damage you are pointing out.
Yessss ! Sorry but real fans new it !
Spence’s defensive flaws left the door wide open for Crawford’s counterpunching style (no shocker there), but Crawford’s jab was a MONSTER!! Crawford was calm and relaxed during Spence’s attempts to throw body punches and while Spence tried to apply pressure (Crawford became more mean). Crawford’s defense was also solid.
If there is a contractually confirmed rematch, Spence will have to work on his head movements, and he will have to keep his chin tucked/hands up while applying inside pressure. In previous fights, Spence had a tendency to go front foot heavy while applying inside pressure, but prior opponents were too hesitant to work on their counterpunching. Tonight, Spence’s defensive flaws were finally exposed by an outstanding counterpuncher.
I seriously believe Spence will have major problems at 154 because 154 is not good for Spence (e.g. due to his defense). Spence can take the rematch and work on his defensive flaws or retire because 154 is not for him.
Crawford was on boxing fire!!
No rematch. The world knows.
Spence landed his best punch of the fight in Round 7 and was immediately countered and knocked down. Fortunately, no one is complaining about the stoppage being premature. Bud was locked in and landing massive shots after a nice, patient 8th round.
Bud and Inoue both impressed this week with one-sided master class wins.
wow,
i had crawford. but didnt see it going like it did
No point for a rematch, Crawford has good options as an undisputed king, Ennis, winner of Thurman vs Hugas and some other good opponents. For Spence he is going to fight at 154 for sure, after a good rest, being as talented as he is he might have a mega fight on hand against Tszyu.
I’d take the Bud we saw tonight over any of those three (Thurman, Ugas or Boots).
Ugas would present the most problems stylistically. Thurman would be knocked out and Ennis would have no idea what to do with Crawford. Outside of getting old overnight, Bud’s next fight looks good.
Crawford needs to move up to 154 and become undisputed there. Ennis is overrated and would get absolutely destroyed by Crawford.00 Nobody wants to see Thurman in the ring as his best days are behind him. He surely has done nothing to deserve a Bud fight.
You are probably correct, but, I have to admit I would watch Crawford vs Ennis, but Thurman, no way….
Tszyu would KO and end Spence’s career.
Dam just think if Bob Arum wouldn’t have spent all that time with Manny Pacquiao. He had another great star right in front of him but continuously disrespected Bud. Now he will sell tickets but unfortunately it’s too late. Live and learn.
Took him to 3 titles and paid him millions despite Bud only being a draw in Omaha. Such disrespect. Bud had to leave Arum since PBC had all the top 147 fighters in house
It well know Arum doesn’t like nor respect black fighters. He let Floyd go for $750K and the man made at least a billion dollars. Arum has the best fighter in the world under his nose but put all of his attention on Loma and Fury. Screw Bob Arum. He didn’t learn from the first time when he has Floyd Mayweather.
You know, I am no arum fan, but to hear how he doesn’t respect black fighters is garbage. He promoted ali? He currently promotes Stevenson. He promotes Anderson and other top black prospects. He promoted Bradley and Ward. Remember, this is business. Truth be known, he couldn’t get a real fight with Crawford because nobody would fight him. It took him completing his contract to get this fight. Mayweather is Mayweather, he would have bought himself out because that’s who he is. Economics my man, economics.
Good post…
Crawford vs Mayweather Jr…would love that one
I was wrong. Great work Bud. Erroll should consider not fighting for a while at least anyways…he is slurring some..Inoue, Crawford, Bivol, p4p in that order..
The weight clearly was an issue
No Crawford is p4p#1. He made history as the first male double undisputed. What has Inoue done that is more impressive than that?
Uhhh, unified champion in 3 weight divisions and undisputed in 1. Before the end of the year will be a four belt undisputed in two and unified in 2 more. But, he’s not black so I can see why you don’t like him.
Crawford beat an inactive fighter who never faced a single elite opponent in his whole career, who was also having hell making weight. Inoue faces nothing but in prime high level competition back to back, and destroys all his opponents. Crawford is brilliant, an all-time great but he’s the current #2 pound for pound fighter in the world. You’ll just have to deal with that, brotha.
Number 2 p4p after? According to BoxRec #1 before Canelo, Bivol, Inoue…
Stop ✋ you had to add color, get help man, it’s 2023 you still Mad? Just admire what’s better, and be humble.
No way Inoue is #1. Not his fault, but welterweight division has way more fighters. The average man doesn’t weigh 122lbs. Bigger talent pool. So it’s close, but Crawford clearly after that performance. Fulton wasnt even in the pound for pound conversion.
Dude fought a washed up Donaire twice do research before you speak
Inoue had bested 4 divisions and collected the belts along the way. He has an argument as well. Both have an argument but D is still #1.
He is great but these divisions are only about three pounds apart.
This fight proved one major thing….. Derrick James is completely overrated! He did absolutely nothing to better his fighter!
and he should have thrown in the towel. Spence was getting dangerously close to being permanently hurt for 3 rd prior to the stoppage. If he cared for Spence, he would have stopped it in the corner 2 rd prior.
Terrence Crawford reminds me of Marvin Hagler
Super dedicated
Technically fantastic. Seldom seen are super smooth, effective switch hitters like Crawford
Mentally and physically tough
An All Time Great Fighter I believe
Biggest one sided superfight of all time. Crawford destroyed his heart.
There is absolutely no doubt Crawford is P4P#1. He leveled up. No shame to Spence for losing to the top guy. Excellent night for boxing. Black excellence on full display tonight.
Great win by Crawford but beating a rusty and weight drained Spence is not as good as what Inoue did earlier this week. Crawford is the number one pound for pound fighter in the NABE, but the number one pound for pound fighter on planet Earth belongs to the one and only Naoya ‘monster’ Inoue. Crawford does knock Usyk down from number two to number three with this victory tonight, however.
Sweet revenge, after Al Haymon and Steven Espinosa tried to screw him with all stupid contract stipulations and pay percentages.
I picked spence, but I was wrong. Thumbs up to Crawford. Completely outclassed him. Funny, though don’t remember seeing this many people on here giving their predictions before the fight. A bunch of go alongs to get along.
On every boxing site that I had access to before the fight I predicted that Crawford would stop spence somewhere between the 7th-10th round. Crawford is a cold blooded fighter with high ring IQ and superior skill.
That’s nice. I’m sure you did, hmmm.
Very good fighter vs Elite level fighter
Everyone here in Omaha that’s never seen a fight or will again decided they had to out for this one. friend of mine who owns the biggest sports bar chain in town told me they quit taking reservations WED with a $25 cover charge and every seat presold. I expected spence to be better but came close as I called it KO in 10. spence could have made it through the round but no point, he was beat and beat hard. they’re going to have trouble selling the rematch except in Omaha.
Once the smoke had cleared, I began to think about what I had just seen.
Jawdropping.
Crawford’s speed – a decisive factor to everything else.
What comes next? Possible fights? Jaron Ennis rather than Vergil Ortiz Jr, in my opinion, although I can live with both. Or is it possible with one step up and face Jermell Charlo? But now, I have to wonder if Jermell Charlo, with his inactivity, is ready for such a fight.
Anyway, much respect to both fighers.
Hats off and congratulations to the most impressively completed fight in a long time.
It was a pleasure to watch this fight and make a little dough on the side. Bud has multiple weapons and they were all on display. Timing, power, selection, and a jab that punishes you if you try to get in close. I give Spence credit at least for effort, and not giving up since this is the big event people come together to watch. I’m happy that Crawford got to show and prove.
Crawford was incredible. He punished Spence. Can’t imagine a rematch going any different.
Crawford is the best at the welterweight division since at least 10 years ! My hat to Spence for accepting that fight !
Crawford is so good that was as perfect a fight as you could’ve expected from him. He beat Spence at everything and gradually beat him down. Spence wasn’t at the races though, it seemed his legs weren’t under him. Despite being younger he looked like the older fighter and was shook every time he got clipped. Maybe this came two years too late for him and his life outside the ring caught up with him and there’s only so many times a guy can go to the well when they are big at the weight. He had to be tip top just to give Bud a close fight let alone beat him. I think Crawford beats anyone up to 154lb. Only thing he hasn’t got at 35 is loads of time.
Holy shit. Bud might be the best counter puncher alive right now. I’m torn, really like them both. Great performance Bud, back to the drawing board for Spence. He’ll be back.
Showtime can drop this “first male” bs anytime now.
During fights, Crawford can often look unspectacular, his punches don’t look as destructive as some fighters, but he’s a very composed, does the basics extremely well, fires short precise shots and is rarely wreckless.
Spence is a good fighter, but the difference for me was Spence had to take chances to get his shots off, and was very open while being aggressive, which Crawford capitalised on perfectly.
Crawford’s defense was very subtle, being in range, but slipping, sliding and blocking Spencer’s attack.
The overall result was a relatively easy KO win for Crawford, a spectacular result.
Finally, we have 1 fighter at welter who’s the champ.
Be great to see the same happen for the other weight classes.
I like Spence but i’m not sure how anyone thought this would go any different.
Spence is a good boxer but basic, as in he does the basics really well.
Crawford is a very intelligent, thinking fighter who can switch-hit, counter beautifully and change angles and game plans when needed.
A modern great in my book.
Bud has a throwback style of a fighter from the 8Os, he is so relaxed and chill during the fight, relaxed and takes his time, waiting for the moment and then out of nowhere he just turns it up so smooth.
Not sure if the majority agrees, but Spence has not been the same since the accident, still a threat for some just not Crawford.
Bud left no doubt he is P4P #1
Dude is a true boxing craftsman
Once Spence felt that low key power Bud has he realized he was in trouble, he got a beat down that might hurt his career
Let’s see how he recovers from this loss
But a rematch should not be on his mind at the moment
Gifted with long reach
A virtuoso , majestic simply beautiful display of some of the best boxing seen since the Floyd and Whittaker days . Bud is on the list of greats already
As many had posted a few days ago on this site, the fight was over at the weigh-in. Spence looked emaciated. He never regained his weight and still looked the he did at the weigh-in when he stepped in the ring. It’s a shame how we were screwed out of a potentially great fight because of the waiting game, wrong side of the BS, and the Haymonion formula.
Crawford put on a performance for the ages. I had called a clear decision for Bud, but I didn’t think the whooping would start right out of the gate.
No need for a rematch other than a good payday for Crawford.
My thoughts exactly. Spence looked extremely weak in the ring.
I didn’t see the whole fight, just the highlights on YouTube. JFC I thought Crawford would take him into deep water before going for the kill considering Spence’s typical work rate early on in a fight. The guy I was rooting for won, but I thought this would have been much closer.
Went as expected, did predict that Crawford would stop Spence before round 10. Crawford is cold blooded, super focused, and extremely high IQ when it comes to the sport of boxing. He reminds me somewhat of the younger Roberto Duran and a prime Hagler. If they rematch, I can’t see how Spence can turn the tide from getting another beat down.
People place way too much emphasis on the 4 belt era as all those corrupt alphabet sanctioning bodies have done is totally cheapen the words “World Champion” With Crawford’s win over Spence he can now legitimately claim to be the new Lineal Welterweight Champion, screw the sanctioning bodies.
Also cheapened by having a “division” for every three pounds.
Speechless. What was in that Omaha water….
Bud. He showed a mighty chin. Very surprised. It looked like he absorbed some decent shots.
Couple things.
1. Why was Spence given a break after three rounds? He wasnt being battered at that point yet they had to check him out? Ive never seen a fighter get a break like that so soon with so little damage.
2. Commentator’s need to quit calling Crawford a dog because they have zero idea what fighting like a dog means. Crawford showed skill, ring generalship and patience. At no pound did he fight like anything other than a great fighter.
Crawford made Spence look like a flashy fighter with zero power and no plan B.
I think there was concern over the eye where he had the detached retina. Just speculation on my part.
I’m ready for the showing on Show Time
Crawford with an outstanding performance. Deserve all the accolades as he was the better figure. On a side note, I’ve never seen Spence look like that before a fight or even during a fight. Not an excuse for the loss before I get jumped on, but Spence looked like a zombie in the dressing room and he came out fighting like he knew he only had a limited amount of energy to try and win. He was pretty reckless from the opening bell and that played right into Crawford’s hands. To Spence’s credit he made no excuses but it looked like making 147 killed him or he just smoked a ton of weed before the fight.
Told you so.
well i got this one completely wrong congrats to Bud he put on a beating
This was Calzaghe vs Lacy. With power.
I had Bud by KO in rd 10 or 11. Great fight.
Every punch bothered him..even in 1st round Spence attacked Witt combo and Crawford hit with straight left as he moved away ..glancing punch but you saw spence react poorly ..I knew then it was over..first 10 or so seconds of fight Crawford threw a hard jab ..he could have won just with jab and might have stopped him with a jab if he threw it consistently
I knew TBUD would win. That’s is where my prediction ended. I didn’t know it wasn’t even making it the full 12. I also thought it was going to be competitive. Not even close.
Stop with the excuses for Spence already. I don’t care if there was no car accident or no partying for Spence in the past he wasn’t beating that version of Crawford last night. And FYI Spence talks like that because he lost half his teeth in the wreck.
Congratulations to Crawford on his performance. He is good but not the #1 P4P. That title belongs to Naoya Inoue.
Having watched the two big fights this past week, they sadly did not live up to what were some expectations. What were the causes? In Spence the causes were really great I feel. Not to say that he might have won, however his performance might have been better. His inactivity was for me the major cause of his disappointing performance. 3 matches from 2020 to this one. Was it 15 or 16 months since his last fight? Crawford at least had fought back in December of last year.
It was rather telling when the doctor looked at Spence after the 4th round, though it did spur him a bit on in the 5th, and a gentleman who I was sitting next to at a bar, we both gave him that round, though the judges did not. The referee did a great job in stopping the match when he did, with no complaint from Spence.
Hopefully he might learn from this, and dedicate himself. If he retires fine. But then he has to dedicate himself to living a clean life I believe. Am I wrong? I do feel that everything went really down hill with his traffic accident back in 2019.
Fulton also had not fought in over a year, though from 2019 was more active than Crawford, but not as much as Inoue.
I thought what Inoue did to Fulton was the best performance I’ve seen in a long time. Crawford said, “hold my beer!”
I was stunned at how easy this was for TC. That jab hurt Spence every time it landed. He made a very good fighter look like he was nothing. This performance is probably the best I’ve ever seen in nearly 50 years of watching this Sport.
Poor Spence got seriously woked! No point in a rematch.
Timing, Speed, & Accuracy = Power esp when a fighter is coming forward. Wisdom dominates strength so Bud knows what he’s gonna do next & Errol don’t & can’t fight off of his back foot, move side to side, or switch like Bud. When Bud pulled up on Spence in 2018, Bud asked him “How you gonna be the Boogie man when I’m chasing you?” Then told him he gonna get stanky leg, & not to try to go to the body.” He didn’t listen & damn if his legs didn’t look like top ramen noddles in “HOT” water after that shot in the ninth round. His corner should have stopped it a round earlier. When Andre Ward retired unbeaten he was#4# & Crawford was # 2. How can a man lose his ranking without losing a fight? Roman “Chocalito” Gonzales got KOed in devastating fashion & Canelo lost a lopsided decision to Bivol. As Floyd’s late Unc Black Mamba used to say, “Most ppl don’t know S**T about boxing.” Terrence “BUD” Crawford has always been the “A” side in the eyes of ppl who knew. Now, everybody knows.
Ppl commenting about neurological damage from Spence’s car accident & surgery after the detached retina but Bud was shot in the head in ’08 & never used it as a built-in excuse. I liked Errol from the 1st time I saw him but without a solid defense he was tailor made for Bud who has so much more in his bag.
He should have been for long..
Spence was stationary most of the fight and was much slower than he used to be. He just didn’t exhibit much side to side movement like his trainer was urging him to do. He just looked diminished from the fighter he was before the accident.
That said, Crawford’s jab was powerful and he just had too many weapons for Spence. Spence was outgunned that night and I’m surprised he lasted as long as he did.
I still believe Inoue is the No. 1 P4P fighter in the world with Bud No. 2. Inoue’s quick in and out movement, boxing skills, exceptional footwork and jab, and explosive power all provide the total package. Bud didn’t need exceptional footwork since Spence just stood in front of him stationary all night long.
Great performance by Crawford. No need for a rematch. I would have liked this fight to happen a couple of years ago. Spence just didn’t look like the fighter he used to be in that Saturday night massacre.
I told everyone that Bud would win and they wouldn’t listen. Spence is a straight ahead fighter with no defense, head movement or in ring adjustment ability. This fight reminded me of rocky 3 (Clubber Lang vs Rocky Balboa 1).
That was a disgrace! That stoppage was just as bad as the Tony Weeks stoppage. They robbed Spence!!!!
Seriously, I thought Bud would win. Even thought he might stop him but I thought it was going to be because late in the firefight that Spence might get caught with a good counter. Never thought either fighter would be dominated. I’ve thought Bud was P4P since he was a lightweight and I STILL underestimated him. Respect to both fighters tho. Glad they came together to give us what we wanted.