Breakdown of fantasy fight between Terence Crawford and Floyd Mayweather at 140

[bluebeam]

Floyd had offense and defense at 140. that's the best version of mayweather.

Floyd by decision



but bud would kick his ass if they fought today

[sugar ray lenrd]

Terence Crawford is considered by many to be a top 5 P4P fighter. Some have even argued that he is number 1 P4P which is debatable. He shares similar traits to that of Marvin Hagler and Mark Too Sharp with a little splash of Pernell. Many have said that he is the next superstar in boxing and there have been many who have said that he is the air apparent to Floyd's throne. After Crawford dominated Postol and Diaz a debate emerges as to whether Crawford is the next Mayweather. There have been many, in the boxing community, who have claimed that Crawford is just as skilled, if not a better overall boxer compared to Floyd. I was once in agreement with these claims but after watching every fight that Floyd had from 130 to 140, I have drawn the conclusion that Floyd was on a whole other planet compared to where Crawford is now and that says a lot since Crawford is turning 30. First, let's breakdown each fighter.

Floyd:
5"8
72" Reach
Defensive fighter, great counter punching, beautiful footwork, good power in both hands, very accurate, solid chin, and very high boxing IQ(there are only three other boxers who have a higher one.)

Crawford:
5"8
70" Reach
Switch hitter, good power in both hands, accurate, pretty strong at 140, suspect chin, good jab, fast hands, good ring IQ.

Both started boxing at a young age and both had pretty good amateur backgrounds. Only difference is Floyd one a gold metal while Crawford didn't. Crawford seems to have a killer instinct and a great will to win. What's impressive about Crawford is the fact that he is able to adjust and pick his opponent apart. But, looking back at history there were many fighters who were able to do the same thing, Oscar, Chavez, Pacquiao, Ali, Duran, Pernell, Wilfred, Bhop, Roy Jones, Dempsey and many others. And to be quite honest with you some of these fighters didn't have to wait after round two or three to figure their opponents out. You see, Crawford is special but I've always felt that there comes a time when you should already be in control of a fight.You shouldn't have to take unnecessary hits before you have your opponent figured out because you might not make it to the second round. Now, Crawford has been able to get away with this because he hasn't faced any great punchers in his career nor has he faced an opponent that is able to cut off the ring. Now, things may change and Crawford might change this nasty habit but habits are hard to break especially when you are use to getting away with fighting with fire.

Now, Floyd has everything that you want in a fighter. Great offense, elite defense, perfect balance, fast hands, athleticism, chin. He is literally, in my opinion, the perfect fighter. You could place him in any era and he would be top 3-5 P4P. He is great at making adjustments but before figuring his opponent out he doesn't take any punishment. He is like a martial artist, in the Bruce Lee sense, that he is able to slow down time and control his opponent and make his opponent over think. Now, a fight between Crawford and Floyd would be a chest match don't get me wrong. I just don't think it would be as competitive as many people think due to the fact that there is such a disparity in boxing skill. Based off the eye test, Floyd is the bigger and more athletic fighter. Floyd had better defense, head movement, faster hands, counter puncher, more accurate, less sloppy, and he also had pretty good power from 130 to 140 which people forget. I will also argue that Floyd was the better offensive fighter due to being able hit off awkward angles, over power his opponent, and he was great at fighting off the backfoot which Crawford is above average at. Although Crawford is the better switch hitter, he often times gets hit way too much and his footwork is good but not great. Experience would also be in Floyd's favor due to the fact that he faced superior fighters from 130 to 140. Now, I do understand that Floyd only had one fight at 140 and that Crawford has had at least four. But if you look at Crawford's resume at 140(including indongo who Crawford will beat i'm sure) none of those guys are even better than the out of prime Gatti that Floyd defeated. Plus from 130 to 140 Crawford hasn't fought anyone that compares to the guys Floyd had to face like Corrales, Cortley, Hernandez, Bruseles, and Castillo. Now, this isn't to knock Crawford since he can only fight who is put in front of him but this has to be taken into consideration when you are matching a great fighter against another great fighter. Yes, Crawford has made things look easy but if you were to place him in an era where there's Mosley, Gatti, Tszyu, Oscar, Pryor, Pernell and Judah, he wouldn't be able dominate due to the fact that he would be facing fighters just as skilled and better defensively. Floyd on the other hand would still be a top 5 P4P due to his phenomenal footwork and defense. Crawford on the other hand, would be another great fighter but he wouldn't be placed on a high pedestal like he is now. Although Crawford is great, the hype around him is based off the fact that he hasn't fought anyone great. He hasn't fought someone who can dish it out and actually adjust and hurt him. Floyd faced that when he was at those lower weight classes and I have no doubt that facing Crawford at 140 would be no threat to him whatsoever. the early rounds will be a little competitive but after that Floyd will just counter and pick Crawford apart due to being the superior boxer with better defense. I project 9-3 or 10 -2 Floyd. Now, there is still a chance that Crawford could change my mind. He could, possibly, go up to 147 and clear out that division but the chances of that happening is unlikely due to the fact that he isn't stronger nor does he have the capabilities of bouncing around and not getting hit. To break it down in a single sentence, Crawford is a great fighter but Floyd is a phenomenal fighter. We will see another Crawford before we will see another Floyd.

Not to take anything away from Floyd, prior to Gatti fighting him, Gatti had already lost 5 times. Gatti had lost to Angel Manfredy, Ivan Robinson (twice), Oscar Dela Hoya (although he moved up in wgt oscar was to big for him), Micky Ward. Mayweather would've beaten Gatti regardless, I'm just giving an inside fact of what we truly had.

[Dosumpthin]

Floyd had offense and defense at 140. that's the best version of mayweather.

Floyd by decision



but bud would kick his ass if they fought today

@ 140 Floyd by KO 10th round.

1. TC got hit clean and buzzed too many times by midget Gamboa. Floyd finishes what the little guy couldn't.

2. Down on points headed into the 7th. 5-1 or 4-2 for Floyd, TC will be fighting out of a hole working harder trying to gain ground.

3. TC would've punched himself out by the 9th. Present Floyd would coast to a UD. 140 Floyd hunts him down for the ko finsh.


Question is what combo does 140 Floyd KO Crawford with: 4 lead straights or a lunging double left hook?

[sugar ray lenrd]

Hmmm...he's how I would break this down, at 140 Floyd only had 1 or 2 fights. He fought & beat an arturo Gatti that had already been beaten 5x prior to his fight against Floyd. Sure Floyd would've beaten him regardless, but i can't use Gatti as a great win for floyd when he was already beaten by Manfredy, & ivan Robinson 2x. Where as Crawford has beaten Victor Postal, Dierry Jean, Dulorme, Hank Lundy, John John Molina,jr, & Felix Diaz. So the question is at Jr Welter is Floyd win against a Gatti that was already beaten 5 times, better than Crawford's win against Postol, Dulorme, Diaz, Molina, Lundy & jean? Honestly I don't think so. Remember we are talking about Jr Welter (140 lbs) only.

[HarvardBlue]

I'm going with Floyd. He would be able to handle Crawford whichever stance he chose to fight in. Mayweather was lightening fast at 140 and he had pop. Crawford has the edge in power but he would be swinging at air often. Even at this age Mayweather would be hard for Crawford. Especially if he has the same amount of speed as when he fought Berto.

[sugar ray lenrd]

[QUOTE=Dosumpthin;17867134]@ 140 Floyd by KO 10th round.
1. TC got hit clean and buzzed too many times by midget Gamboa. Floyd finishes what the little guy couldn't.


First of all Crawford fight against Gamboa was at a different division lightwgt 135 lbs. And quite honestly Gamboa had better skills than a Gatti that was already beaten 5x. Not hating on anyone, but when you make these fantasy matchups, truly there has to be a line drawn somewhere.

[Sheldon312]

Floyd all day. And Floyd got robbed in the olympics....so who are the other three with a higher boxing IQ???

I shouldn't have said higher,I should've said equally matched. But I would say Pernell, Leonard, and Ali but I'm sure you could add more.

[Sheldon312]

Crawford smokes Floyd at 140....now. Floyd too old and big to not be Drainweather there. Ko win for TC.

Close to prime Floyd could handle TC at 140 though. Would be a pretty interesting fight. Tc would make Floyd work for the W but over time Floyd's class would show imo.

I personally don't think it would be that hard. Floyd's way too defensive and to beat him you need someone who is bigger, stronger, just as fast, and able to cut the ring off you can't really out box him( only Leonard, Robinson, and Pernell would be able to due such a thing) Only fighters I see who would be able to beat Floyd is Pryor, Hearns, and maybe Leonard. The rest are 50/50 fights.

[Sheldon312]

Crawford is very good but I believe Mayweather is much better and would easily out box him or knock him out. Crawford has been on all the top ten pfp lists for a couple of years at age 29. Mayweather was on all the pfp top ten lists at age 22.

This is why I said Floyd is phenomenal while Crawford is just great.

[Metho_4u]

Floyd takes it, but likely takes a few rds to gather info, before going to work.