By: Sean Crose
It’s here. Canelo Alvarez and Terence Crawford are mere hours from engaging in a literal superbout Saturday night in Las Vegas. And it will all come down to one simple question: Can Terence Crawford absorb the blows Canelo Alvarez is going to land on him? Make no mistake about it, Canelo will land a few shots at the very least. Will those shots prove to be effective against someone as good as Crawford though? That remains to be seen. The question however is essential for those eager to see how tomorrow night’s bout between Canelo and Crawford plays out. Canelo is the naturally bigger man, but Crawford is insanely, wildly skilled in the ring. Indeed, if Crawford wasn’t moving up two divisions in order to fight Canelo, if they were more equal in size, there’s no doubt the fighter known as Bud would be the favorite.
Anyone who’s paid attention to this bout since it went from pipe dream to reality knows that this is a strange affair. Crawford’s glory days at least up till now have been at welterweight where he defeated Errol Spence thoroughly several years back. Since then, the Nebraskan has only fought once at 154. He won, but he didn’t look overly impressive. How, people are asking, will he able to get past the super middleweight Canelo who fights naturally at the 168 pound limit? It’s a good question frankly, but not an impossible one to answer. If Crawford is able to keep Canelo frustrated, if he’s able to move above the ring and not allow Canelo to tee off, the American is very likely to win the fight… provided, of course, that he stay away from those punches (Canelo is bound to land at least one or two at minimum after all)
The truth is that these fighters are good. Very good. Generationally good. That’s why this fight went from seeming downright silly to being a virtual pick ‘em. Should Canelo win well, what’s there left for him to prove? Should Crawford win, he might well be considered one of the greatest ever. And that’s saying something. So, how’s it going to play out? I honestly don’t know and you don’t either. The best we can make of it is that both men will fight as if it’s the battle of his life. So, each will have a strategy and will be as prepared as one could imagine. If I had to guess though, and I mean HAD to guess I would think that Crawford would get out of some tough spots and manage to squeak out the victory in the toughest fight he could possibly imagine.
Prediction? Crawford by split, perhaps very controversial, decision.
