It can be easy to forget that Terence Crawford will turn 38 years old in September. 

Until his last fight, a relatively uneventful unanimous decision win over Israil Madrimov last August, Crawford was in the form of his life. Prior to the move to 154lbs to fight Madrimov, Crawford fought eight times at welterweight and recorded eight wins and eight often-violent stoppages. 

He has been an elite fighter for more than a decade, and a fixture in the top two or three spots on the pound-for-pound list for nearly as long. Though Crawford is nearly three years older than his audacious choice of a September opponent, Saul “Canelo” Alvarez, the latter’s decline, in the past and in relation to the matchup, has been discussed far more often.

Regardless of his longevity, we probably won’t have the privilege of watching Crawford fight much longer. 

Turki Alalshikh, Saudi Arabian advisor, boxing power broker, and the main person responsible for the Canelo-Crawford fight being made, said that Crawford approached him about the bout with the intention of it being his last. 

In a sit-down chat posted to The Ring magazine’s (which he owns) social channels, Alalshikh said, “Crawford, in the beginning, he came to me in London. He said, ‘This is the retirement fight.’”

It’s not a particularly surprising development. 

Crawford has been openly saying for some time that he doesn’t have many fights left. If his purse for the Alvarez fight isn’t big enough to be a retirement fund – and then some – nothing would be. Should Crawford manage to win, he’ll leave the sport on a note more resounding than anybody thought possible a few years ago. And that’s to say nothing about the damage he might take from Canelo’s heavy fists. 

Regardless, the talking point has been fairly quiet thus far: This may well be the last time we see Terence Crawford. 

His absence in the now-deserted welterweight division has already been felt keenly; his absence from the sport as a whole will leave an even greater void. 

There’s at least one Crawford fight to come, however. And we all know how rarely a fighter can leave boxing behind for good on the first attempt.