by David P. Greisman

Barely half a year has passed since Terence Crawford had an opportunity and made the most of it — and much has come because of that.

Crawford had stepped in to face Breidis Prescott as a late replacement for the injured Khabib Allakhverdiev. Crawford excelled and impressed, taking a clear unanimous decision on the undercard to HBO’s broadcast of the Brandon Rios-Mike Alvarado rematch.

Crawford was back on HBO in June, scoring a sixth-round stoppage of Alejandro Sanabria. And he’ll be making his third appearance on the network on Oct. 5, fighting on the undercard to Miguel Cotto’s bout with Delvin Rodriguez.

Crawford’s promoter, Bob Arum of Top Rank, spoke with David Greisman of BoxingScene on Oct. 4.

BoxingScene.com: What are your thoughts on this large amount of attention being given to Terence Crawford, who’s making his third appearance on HBO? It seems like they have a lot of faith in him, as I’m sure you do as well.

Arum: “When Khabib [Allakhverdiev] fell out of the fight with [Breidis] Prescott and they were looking for a replacement, I immediately zeroed in on Terence. I have always been impressed with his talent. And now, thanks to HBO, that talent is being showcased. I think there’s tremendous upside in Terence Crawford, and if I have my choice between two fighters, [Adrien] Broner or Crawford, I would go with Crawford.”

BoxingScene.com: Why is that?

Arum: “I think he’s more talented, and certainly more dedicated.”

BoxingScene.com: How do you get Crawford to resonate with the audience, given that he’s not into the kind of antics that Broner is?

Arum: “I think that we have a whole history of having fighters that conduct themselves like gentlemen and yet were able to monetize their athletic performances. [Miguel] Cotto is one, Manny [Pacquiao] is another. You don’t have to act like a jerk in order to make money.”

Pick up a copy of David’s new book, “Fighting Words: The Heart and Heartbreak of Boxing,” at http://bit.ly/fightingwordsamazon. Send questions/comments via email at fightingwords1@gmail.com