Lundy: I'm Coming To Hurt Crawford, I Want a Knockout

By Thomas Gerbasi

As the biggest fight of his career approaches, Hank Lundy knows what you’ve said about him. And that’s okay, because a day from now, it’s down to him and Terence Crawford and nobody else.

“I read everything,” Lundy said. “‘He shouldn’t be in the ring, he just lost.’ But like I tell everybody, nobody in this boxing game ever kicked my butt. Nobody. All my losses are controversial losses and I’m telling you, February 27th, you’re gonna see something special with me.”

It’s the refrain from every world title challenger, but every world title challenger is not this 32-year-old from Philadelphia. Lundy is a believer. He doesn’t care if you’re on board, only that you listen. And he wants you to know that he is not showing up to the Theater at Madison Square Garden as the B-side, the 28th victim of the WBO junior welterweight champion. He’s coming to take the belt.

“I haven’t just thought about it, I’ve been dreaming about it,” he said. “When they took fights from me when I know I should have won, it just pushed me to go even harder. So this fight, I don’t want it to go to a decision. I want a knockout win to show the world that Hammerin’ Hank has been here all along, they just took it away from me on these papers.”

Those papers most likely won’t be kind to Lundy if the fight with Crawford goes 12 rounds. And if it goes the route, it will most likely be because the champion from Nebraska fought a smart fight and outboxed the challenger. But this isn’t shaping up to be that kind of fight. Lundy hasn’t stopped talking since the bout was signed, and Crawford has gone right along with it, even shoving the Philadelphian during Thursday’s press conference. It’s the perfect scenario to get Crawford to fight Lundy’s fight. But will he?

“It doesn’t even matter if he wants to fight,” Lundy said. “I’m going out there, I’m gonna force the issue, I’ll be better at boxing – and brawling if I’ve got to. Everybody’s going to see a new Hammerin’ Hank out there.”

The old one hasn’t been bad at all, and while there have been some questionable calls and bad breaks over the years, he’s refused to lose sight of the world title shot that has eluded him while other fighters seemingly fall into championship bouts.

“A lot of these guys in their careers, they haven’t faced or went through what I went through to make it here,” he said. “Most of these guys had the silver spoon in their mouth. Me, I’m a hard-nosed guy where everything I had, I got through hard work. And I’m not gonna let nobody determine or steal away from me all the hard work I put in. I fought my way to a world title and now I’m about to cash in and win this world title.”

There is no wavering in his voice or belief, but he can afford to be like that now, as the only thing determining his destiny will be his two fists. Yet even through the tough times, he says that he never questioned that one day this day would come.

“With me, there was no doubt about it,” he said. “I just put that in the back of my head and I kept on fighting. I kept on fighting my heart out. That’s why every time ‘Hammerin’ Hank’ is in a fight, you see my passion and what I bring to the table. I’ve got that will to never give up and I’m not gonna give up. After this world title fight, once I win it, I want to go get all of them (the belts). I want to take what they’ve taken from me. I’m not downplaying no fighter, but a lot of these guys, they get shots because they’re easy opponents. You don’t see these guys knocking on Hammerin’ Hank’s door because they know what it is.

“I’m battle tested,” Lundy continues. “I’ve been in there with every style. That takes me back to when I faced Ajose Olusegun. 31 wins, one loss, he had a war with (Lucas) Matthysse, got stopped in the 11th round and I thought it was a premature stoppage. The fans said, ‘oh, he’s going to knock Hammerin’ Hank out.’ What did Hammerin’ Hank do? I beat this guy every single round. And this is a guy nobody wanted to fight. I stepped up to fight him. I love when people count me out. That’s when I’m at my best.”

The oddsmakers are counting Lundy out, but there are more than a few fans and pundits that believe if he can get Crawford into a shootout, he’s got a better than average shot at pulling off the upset. It’s a longshot, but a shot nonetheless, and that’s all someone like Hank Lundy wants, and needs.

“I had the NABF title, I am the current champ with the WBC Continental title at 135, and I had the NABO, so those belts helped me go a long way, to defend them, to know what it’s like to be champ and somebody is trying to come and take what you have,” he said. “But now I’m fighting for a world title, it’s a different type of feeling. If I can win this, I’ll be on top of the world, and that’s what we fight for, to get that world title.”

And he believes he’s going to get it.

“When I tell you I’m gonna do something, I’m gonna do it,” Lundy said. “Terence has been talking a long time, but I’m gonna show everyone what I’m gonna do to him. I’m walking away with that world title, I’m not playing no games. I don’t like this guy, he don’t like me, and I’m coming to hurt him.”