By Keith Idec
NEW YORK – Terence Crawford’s trainer/manager is “fine” with Crawford facing another former champion from England in his next fight.
If Crawford and Kell Brook are to meet, though, Brian McIntyre made it clear that fight for Crawford’s WBO welterweight title must take place in the United States. Brook is a proven draw in the United Kingdom, where boxing has become increasingly popular in recent years.
McIntyre couldn’t care less about Brook’s ability to sell tickets in his homeland. Nevertheless, taking Crawford, of Omaha, Nebraska, on a transatlantic trip to box Brook there could be lucrative for the unbeaten three-division champion.
“F*** that,” McIntyre told a group of reporters after Crawford stopped Amir Khan in the sixth round Saturday night at Madison Square Garden. “We’re the ‘A’ side. What the f*** we going over there for? No, Kell Brook can bring his ass over here. He was here tonight, right? All right, he can bring his ass over here.”
Brook, Khan’s rival, sat ringside and watched Crawford floor Khan in the first round. Khan (33-5, 20 KOs) declined to continue early in the sixth round, after Crawford (35-0, 26 KOs) hit him with a low blow that was declared an accidental foul by referee David Fields.
The 32-year-old Brook (38-2, 26 KOs) stated Sunday morning that his much-discussed domestic showdown with Khan is “dead” now that Khan has suffered the fourth knockout loss of his star-crossed career. The former IBF welterweight champion has shifted his focus from Khan to Crawford because he knows challenging Crawford would give Brook an opportunity to upset arguably the best boxer in the world (https://www.boxingscene.com/kell-brook-i-want-terence-crawford-next-khan-fight-dead--138219).
Crawford would prefer to face Errol Spence Jr. in his next fight. Spence (25-0, 21 KOs), who stopped Brook in May 2017 to win the IBF welterweight title, and Crawford are not likely to meet next, despite that theirs is one of the most anticipated showdowns in boxing.
Bob Arum, Crawford’s promoter, and Eddie Hearn, Brook’s promoter, have discussed the possibility of a Crawford-Brook bout taking place later this year.
“You know, a lot of guys that we’re interested in fighting, like Kell Brook, has said that he wanted to fight Terence,” Arum told a group of reporters early Sunday morning. “And that’d be fun.”
Keith Idec is a senior writer/columnist for BoxingScene.com. He can be reached on Twitter @Idecboxing.