Errol Spence Jr. can forever leave behind the low point in his life.
The unbeaten WBC/WBA/IBF welterweight champion pleaded guilty to misdemeanor DWI, the Dallas County District Attorney’s office confirmed Monday. The single charge stemmed from his October 2019 single car crash in Dallas, when Spence totaled his Ferrari after losing control in the early hours of October 10, 2019 in Dallas, Texas.
Per the plea deal, Spence was sentenced to three days in prison—which was recognized as time previously served—and ordered to pay $3,400 in court costs as first reported by the Dallas Morning News.
Spence sustained multiple injuries which were treated during six days spent in the Intensive Care Unit (ICU) at Methodist Dallas Medical Center. Upon his release, Spence was charged with a single count of DWI, a Class B misdemeanor given his first offense as well as his Blood Alcohol Level registering below the 0.15 limit which enabled him to avoid prison.
Dallas police noted at the time that no additional charges would be filed. Authorities also declined to seek a warrant for the car’s black box to determine his speed at the time of the crash, since there were no other victims or vehicles involved.
The combination of the crash, injury recovery and the pandemic left Spence out of the ring for more than 14 months following his WBC/IBF welterweight title unification win over Shawn Porter in September 2019. The Texas-bred southpaw enjoyed a triumphant return with a twelve-round points win over former two-division titlist Danny Garcia in December 2020.
During the entire recovery process, the now 32-year-old Spence expressed his new appreciation for life and how much he took for granted. As much was reflected during his plea hearing in front of the Dallas County DA earlier this month.
"As I recovered, I thought of how much I could have lost and how blessed I was to have a second chance at life,” Spence noted in a statement. “I also know with this platform I can spread a very powerful message. Don’t drink and drive. Not one drink. It’s not worth it.”
Spence has since re-established himself as the premiere welterweight in the world following a tenth-round stoppage of Yordenis Ugas. Their WBA/WBC/IBF unification bout took place April 16 at AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas, home of the NFL’s Dallas Cowboys and which has housed three of the last four fights for the Desoto-based Spence.
The fight was the first for Spence since fully recovering from surgery to repair a retinal detachment discovered ahead of his scheduled fight with legendary former eight-division titlist Manny Pacquiao last August. Ugas wound up replacing Spence on just eleven days’ notice, outpointing Pacquiao to defend his WBA title before surrendering the belt to Spence in their three-belt unification clash atop a Showtime Pay-Per-View.
Spence’s next fight is not yet confirmed. Industry-wide speculation suggests it will come in an undisputed welterweight showdown with WBO welterweight titlist Terence Crawford (38-0, 29KOs) later this fall. The pairing remains in discussion, with no further updates provided on its progress as this goes to publish.
Jake Donovan is a senior writer for BoxingScene.com. Twitter: @JakeNDaBox
