By Jake Donovan - Terence Crawford capped a Fighter of the Year-worthy 2014 ring campaign with a wide unanimous decision win over Raymundo Beltran to claim the World lineal lightweight championship Saturday evening at CenturyLink Center in Omaha, Nebraska.
The bout lacked the new car scent that came with Crawford’s previous homecoming, a 9th round knockout of Yuriorkis Gamboa in their Fight of the Year contender this past June. Still, the packed house of 11,127 cheered every move made by the local favorite, making for a festive occasion on the tail end of Thanksgiving weekend.
Action was slow out the gate, with the opening round used as a feeling out session for both fighters. Crawford picked up the pace in round two, finding success from both sides of the plate, boxing equally well from a conventional and southpaw stance.
Beltran finally caught Crawford’s attention in round three, scoring big with a right hand. Whereas most fighters would be inclined to clinch their way out of trouble, Crawford opted to return fire, hurting Beltran towards the end of the round.
Pure boxing was enough to get the job done in round four, as Crawford continued to confuse Beltran as he constantly switch stances and tactics. The visiting challenger found a way inside in round five, his best three minutes of the fight to that point.
