By: Sean Crose
He had a winning smile. That sounds weird for a boxer, but it was true. In the case of Errol Spence, there was a magnetism about the guy that made him interesting and fun to watch. Even more interesting and fun were his body shots. They would break a man down in just a matter of rounds. Without doubt there was a lot to like about Spence. Not only was the guy decorated in the amateur ranks, he was also a man who wasn’t afraid to accept a challenge – which wasn’t only always the case with fighters back then. Any guy who would travel to England to win a title from the likes of Kell Brook wasn’t a man who took his business lightly.
Aside from Brook, Spence defeated the likes of Mikey Garcia, Shawn Porter, Danny Garcia, Chris Algieri, and Yordenis Ugas, world titlists all. When all was said and done, the Texan at one point held three out of the four major world welterweight titles. Indeed, Spence was once inset to fight none other than Manny Pacquiao (it fell through).
Still, things weren’t on perfect. In 2019, the man found himself in a serious car crash. People wondered whether Spence would fight again. Looking at the video of the crash, it was a wonder that Spence had actually lived. Fortunately he came back seemingly no worse for wear. It may have taken a few years, but when he returned he put on a solid performance. From then on there was absolutely no doubt that Spence had to throw down with fellow undefeated world titlist Terence Crawford.
It took forever for that fight to get made. In fact, things dragged on so long that it seemed that the two men might not actually ever meet. Once the bout was finally signed, however, people were divided on who would win. Due to the level of competition he had face, people naturally thought that Spence had what it took to beat the difficult of Crawford. Yet Crawford was so dominant in his fights that he had never even really been in trouble. Plus, Crawford WANTED the fight with Spence. Spence. He had something to prove. Spence wanted the fight just as much as Crawford did, but he had already proved plenty.
In the end the entire night belonged to Crawford. He not only dominated Spence. He finished him within the distance. There was no doubt who the better of the two fighters was on that occasion. Spence simply suffered a one-sided beatdown. And he hasn’t been in the ring since. Now though, 3 years after his crushing defeat at the gloved fists of Crawford, Spence is ready to return to the ring. Suffice to say he’s going to bring a whole lot of questions into that ring with him. The question is, how will he answer those questions?
That remains to be seen of course, but the truth is that Spence deserves some credit for wanting to get back into the battlefield. This is a man who hasn’t had the easiest life, whether it’s being damaged by a serious automobile accident or being damaged by one of the greatest fighters to ever live. The very fact that Spence is eager and willing to step into the ring against a quality opponent like Tim Tszyu says something about Spence’s character. Like Spence Tszyu is in need of a big win. Each man has all the reasons in the world to want to emerge victorious. There should be no lack of passion heading into the bout.
It’s clear Spence has taken his time about making a decision as to whether or not to continue boxing. That’s good. This is a situation where the fighter in question needed to get things clear in his mind. Boxing is simply too serious a sport for Spence or anyone else for that matter to take it lightly. Fans should be certain then that Spence ultimately believes that he’s got what it takes to continue on in the sweet science. Ready or not, here he comes.
