By Jake Donovan
It wasn’t the follow-up he envisioned to a Fighter of the Year-level campaign he enjoyed in 2014, but Terence Crawford made the most of the in-ring opportunities with which he’s been presented in the past 12 months. The unbeaten fighting pride of Omaha, Nebraska won every round of his two fights on the year, both of which have come in his second title reign in as many weight classes.
Crawford claimed the super lightweight title in April, scoring a 6th round knockout of Puerto Rico’s Thomas Dulorme. His first title defense saw a well-received homecoming, stopping Dierry Jean in 10 rounds on Saturday evening, live on HBO in front of a sold-out crowd of 11,020 at CenturyLink Center in Omaha.
The latest homecoming marked his third consecutive sellout at the venue, coming mere hours after the Nebraska Cornhuskers hosted visiting Northwestern on its campus roughly 60 miles southwest in Lincoln. Crawford proved both in the ring and at the box office that he is ready for any challenge.
A big one could be next up if his team gets his way. Talks of a potential showdown with Manny Pacquiao loomed overhead all throughout fight week, with promoter Bob Arum floating the idea of it landing next spring in Las Vegas. A hard deadline of April 9 has been assigned, though the fight could come sooner.
After that, Pacquiao – currently a congressman back home in his native Philippines - plans to retire from in order to pursue a Senate seat, which means cutting ties to all other careers, including boxing.
Never a big talker when it comes strictly to boxing, Crawford had no intention of discussing such a dream fight prior to his HBO headliner versus Jean, nor was he in a hurry to jump on the soapbox to campaign for assignment versus one of the most iconic boxing figures of this generation.
“If that's the fight presents itself, then I'm pretty sure it will be properly handled by my promoter and my managers (Cameron Dunkin and Bryan McIntyre) acting in my best interest,” Crawford (27-0, 19KOs) told BoxingScene.com of such an event. “We'll see what happens, but whenever and wherever it needs to take place is fine.”
The decision is ultimately Pacquiao’s to make, as he’d like to go out with a bang. Crawford is on a short list of candidates that includes former 140 lb. champ Amir Khan and the winner of the November 7 welterweight matchup between Tim Bradley and Brandon Rios.
Khan hasn’t fought since May, scoring a decision win in a tougher-than-expected fight with Chris Algieri, whom Pacquiao battered over 12 rounds last November. Pacquiao also already owns decisive wins over Bradley (having split two fights, the loss coming in controversial fashion) and Rios.
On paper, Crawford is the most attractive option. He also brings a little more to the table than an unbeaten record and star-on-the-rise status.
“If that fight happens, it will probably be at 140,” Arum told BoxingScene.com, emphasizing that Crawford's title would be at stake. "Manny is coming in at 144 lbs. but he has to eat five meals a day in order to keep his weight up. He's most comfortable at 140, so I have to imagine it will be for Terence's title.”
Jake Donovan is the managing editor of BoxingScene.com. Twitter: @JakeNDaBox
