Like many others in this sport, Shawn Porter is a good fighter. A really good fighter. To his credit, he’s been willing to do what few others have. Step up and fight the best. Challenge himself. Win, lose or draw.
Terence Crawford is an elite talent. And an absolute killer in the ring. AP
While Saul ‘Canelo’ Alvarez is unquestionably the money man in all of combat sports, there may be no one more skilled between the ropes than Terence ‘Bud’ Crawford.
Arguably the best fighter in the glittering welterweight division and a consensus pound-for-pound pick by many pundits, the Omaha native (37-0) combines a razor-sharp offensive skills with elite defensive nous.
Add to his incredible in-ring IQ and a mean streak that puts one in mind of greats like Sugar Ray Leonard and Roberto Duran, and what you have, in the words of no less than Floyd Mayweather, is “one helluva fighter”.
Did I mention that Crawford is the best switch-hitter in all of combat sports? And arguably the best ever to do it.
There’s only one problem. The competition he’s faced thus far, is well, less than stellar. The two biggest names on his resume are a faded Kell Brook – who’s never been the same since 2016 after he moved up to challenge Kazakh terror Gennady Golovkin at middleweight in a bout of bravado or foolishness and was rewarded with a broken orbital bone – and Amir Khan, whose best years have long since passed.
And the others? Certainly solid B+ fighters (with all due respect) but far from top dogs and a galaxy away from being household names.
Don’t get me wrong. Crawford, who clearly passes the eye-test to even the most casual fans of the sport, isn’t exactly to blame.
Much like Golovkin in his prime, the 34-year-old Omaha native has struggled to find high-profile opponents willing to step between the ropes and test their mettle against him.
Sure, some of that can be chalked up to his beef with promoter Bob Arum – whose job it is to, you know, promote the fighter – as well as boxing power-broker Al Haymon locking down the big names at welterweight (Errol Spence, Keith Thurman, etc etc.), across the street at PBC boxing. Or his seeming comfort with simply beating who they put in front of him and cashing big cheques while doing it.
Regardless, Crawford, for a myriad of reasons, hasn’t exactly had a trying time in the ring. Until now.
Enter Shawn ‘Showtime’ Porter (35-1-3). Calling him the gatekeeper of the welterweight division might be excessively harsh. While he’s not exactly a glittering talent, he’s certainly proved himself a good and game fighter (as evinced by the big names on his resume such as Spence, Thurman, Danny Garcia and Andre Berto).
Porter’s nickname might as be the pitbull. That’s for his take-no-prisoners boxing style, dogged determination coupled with unstoppable cardio and an iron chin (he’s been dropped twice in his career). When in doubt, Porter charges ahead. On the attack. Always. It’s never a pleasant night for his opponents. Never a soft touch.
So, what can we expect on Sunday?
Like many others in this sport, Shawn Porter is a good fighter. A really good fighter. To his credit, he’s been willing to do what few others have. Step up and fight the best. Challenge himself. Win, lose or draw. For the fans, Porter fights are guaranteed to be all action encounters. Boxing needs more fighters like Porter.
But Crawford is an elite talent. And an absolute killer in the ring.
Crawford, as usual, starts slow. Takes the first few rounds to size Porter up.
Porter, ever the pitbull, will keep charging. And Crawford will keep catching him coming in. Keep cracking him with his lightning quick hands and incredible reflexes.
By round 7, Crawford will really begin to turn it on. Crawford has been riding a series of TKOs of late. And I suspect he’ll want to close the show in the same manner. Expect him to do what Errol Spence and no other welterweight has yet: actually stop Porter late in the fight.
Prediction: Crawford stops Porter in Round 9