James Curious To See How Crawford Reacts To Punches at 147
By Ryan Burton
BoxingScene.com joined ATG Radio earlier this week for a chat with welterweight contender Jamal James. The 29-year-old James made a statement in his last bout when he blasted out the rugged Diego Chaves in three rounds on December 15th in California. With the victory James has won two fights in a row since his only loss which came against Yordenis Ugas in 2016.
One of the topics discussed was the state of the welterweight division that James campaigns in.
A blue chip fighter is entering the welterweight division in Terence Crawford. The former lightweight and super lightweight champion is slated to face WBO welterweight champion Jeff Horn in April at Madison Square Garden in New York.
Last year, Crawford - who already won a world title at lightweight - unified the entire junior welterweight division when he brought together the WBO, WBC, WBA, IBF world titles with a knockout victory over Julius Indongo.
Once Crawford made a decision to move up in weight, the World Boxing Organization automatically made him the mandatory challenger to Horn's title.
James has faced Crawford in the unpaid ranks and believes that he will be a handful for anyone in the division - but he's very curious to see how Crawford reacts to the bigger punches at 147.
"I competed against Terence Crawford in the amateurs. He is a hell of a fighter. He works hard but so do we. When we competed in the amateurs my height and reach gave him problems. He beat me twice but I thought I won one of the fights. Coming up in weight, I am waiting to see what happens when these guys who hit him are little bit heavier. He is obviously a world champion and a good fighter," James explained.
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