A potential shot could come with his next win, though Cody Crowley is fighting for a much greater cause.
The unbeaten welterweight contender will next face Abel Ramos as part of a Showtime Pay-Per-View event on March 25 from MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas. The sanctioned WBC welterweight title eliminator will mark Crowley’s first fight since a ten-round points win over Josesito Lopez last April 16 in Arlington, Texas.
It is also the first time the 29-year-old southpaw will enter the ring since the loss of his father James who claimed his own life last June 7. As part of fighting in memory of his father, Crowley has partnered with Team 55: Let’s Tackle Suicide Awareness in his native Ontario, Canada to raise money and awareness for the cause. The organization is hosting multiple fundraisers, including a raffle whose grand prize is a travel package for the March 25 event.
“I’ve partnered up with the WBC outreach program, WBC Cares, a suicide awareness group Team55 in Ontario, Canada,” Crowley revealed during a recent virtual media roundtable. “I’m raising $55,000 in a raffle and sending two people free plane tickets, hotel rooms and floor tickets to my fight, to watch one of the best cards that PBC is putting on this year.”
As previously reported by The Peterborough Examiner, Crowley’s hometown newspaper, the raffle began February 16, where 1,000 tickets at $20 apiece were made available for sale during an Ontario Hockey league game featuring the Peterborough Petes. Local establishment Dr. J’s BBQ & Brews have made tickets available since February 17; the locale will also host a fundraiser doubling as a viewing party on fight night.
The grand drawing will be held March 8 at Dr. J’s. Additional prizes include dinner for two at the barbecue restaurant, autographed gloves from several past boxing greats.
“It’s a hell of a prize,” noted Crowley. “The WBC is donating Roberto Duran-signed gloves, (Julio Cesar) Chavez-signed gloves, a couple of other prizes. All of this money that gets raised goes to an organization where someone is having mental health problems can go to and ask for a therapist. When their insurance doesn’t cover it, Team 55 will go and pay for therapy. They’ll pay for different healing modalities that can help that person who is suffering exert some of that pain that is stuck inside.
“It’s a beautiful thing that we’re doing.”
Former secondary WBA junior lightweight titlist Chris Colbert (16-1, 6KOs)—who faces Jose Valenzuela (12-1, 8KOs) on the same card—was taken aback by the gesture and also volunteered to donate a pair of autographed gloves. Colbert regularly dedicates his fights to raise awareness to various illnesses and epidemics and will dye his hair yellow in honor of suicide awareness for the card.
Headlining the show, David Benavidez (26-0, 23KOs) defends his interim WBC super middleweight title versus Caleb Plant (22-1, 13KOs) in a battle of former full titleholders.
Crowley (21-0, 9KOs) has fought just once per year since the pandemic, though earning productive wins that—under normal circumstances—would have resulted in a title shot by now. His most notable victory to date was a ten-round decision over Kudratillo Abdukakhorov in their December 2021 battle of unbeaten welterweights. Abdukakhorov was the IBF mandatory challenger at the time, though the status was not transferred to Crowley since the fight wasn’t sanctioned by the organization.
A win over Ramos (27-5-2, 21KOs) will leave Crowley in a favorable position. Errol Spence (28-0, 22KOs) currently holds the WBC, WBA and IBF welterweight titles, though—as previously reported by Boxing Scene—he is next due to face former unified titlist Keith Thurman in a non-title fight above the divisional weight limit. Thurman is the current WBC number-one welterweight contender; his status will be reviewed by the WBC after the Spence-Thurman fight.
It could result in Crowley fighting for his first major title. For now, the immediate goals are to beat Ramos in the ring to become a contender while championing a cause to help those who struggle with mental health issues.
“We’re raising awareness and at the same time, giving somebody a beautiful opportunity that they never had or might not get to again,” stated Crowley. “It’s to attend a world class boxing event at the MGM [Grand] Garden Arena in Las Vegas, all paid for. It’s a win-win.
“I think my dad would be very proud.”
All proceeds will go to the Canadian Mental Health Association’s Assertive Outreach for Suicide Prevention (AOSP) program.
Jake Donovan is a senior writer for BoxingScene.com. Twitter: @JakeNDaBox
