Terence Crawford Is The Fighter Casual Boxing Fans Needed | Bobby Burack

LAS VEGAS -- Terence Crawford describes himself as an overachiever. He's not physically imposing. He lacks the allure, the promotional and verbal skills, of the greats before him. But he has called himself the best in the world for years. Boxing enthusiasts agreed periodically. Casual fans didn't care enough about him to debate his standing.

But last Saturday, in what was dubbed the most prolific bout since Mayweather-Pacquiao in 2015, he proved he was, in fact, the best in the world.

Crawford throbbed Errol Spence Jr. for nine rounds, forcing referee Harvey Dock to mercifully end the pounding. Crawford floored Spence three times (Spence had never been to the ground prior to Saturday) and appeared to win every round after the first.

LAS VEGAS, NEVADA - JULY 29: Terence Crawford celebrates with his championship belts after defeating Errol Spence Jr. in the World Welterweight Championship bout at T-Mobile Arena on July 29, 2023 in Las Vegas, Nevada. (Photo by Al Bello/Getty Images)

Boxing is not the monocultural spectacle it was. Greedy promoters often refuse to work together, delaying and derailing the fights fans clamor to see. Fragmentation from networks and pricey pay-per-views complicates a fighter's ability to lure a large following. Boxing lacks a central authority figure like Dana White to book the sport to fit the public interest.

And while boxing captures the attention of the sports world every few years, the sport struggles to retain the interest. Look no further than the mega-fights between Canelo Álvarez and Gennady Golovkin and Tyson Fury and Deontay Wilder, super fight series that uplifted boxing for a night and only a night.

The fallout of Crawford-Spence could follow the same pattern. The odds say it will. But that shouldn't be the case. Terence Crawford sent a message to causal fans:

Follow Terence Crawford.

Fans and writers marvel at the greatness of current athletes. Already, there are discussions about whether Patrick Mahomes and Shohei Ohtani will be the GOATs of their respective sports. Perhaps they will be. And yet, Crawford is as dominant in the ring as Mahomes and Ohtani are on the field.

Aesthetically, Crawford is more appealing than Mayweather and Pacquiao were, more than Canelo is. He's 40-0 with 31 KOs.

He leaves his opponents as perplexed as he does bloody. Crawford is as cerebral as he is brutal. He battered Spence with his fists. But he first out-performed him in the film room, detecting ways to counter his signature jab.

The fight industry holds Skip Bayless in low regard for how he dishonestly framed Pacquiao the winner of the 2015 bout against Mayweather. Bayless erroneously scored Pacquiao the winner of rounds he so clearly lost. And yet, it was Bayless who most succinctly described Crawford's game on Saturday:

"Bud Crawford was CLEARLY the better boxer. Bud Crawford is a boxing genius. Bud Crawford has some Mayweather in him with his defensive skill and ring generalship. But unlike Mayweather, Bud can THUD."

He's Mayweather with a punch.

Crawford is soft-spoken, historically a disadvantage in the promotion. Though it does not have to be. Boxing thrives on heroes and villains, good guys and bad guys, or babyfaces and heels in wrestling terms. Mayweather was a villain. Sugar Ray Leonard was a good guy. Muhammad Ali was both.

Terence Crawford is the likable underdog, the character in the film who overcomes the odds but refuses to change his demeanor.

Crawford grew up in Omaha, Nebraska, where he negotiates to host most of his fights. Crawford never embraced Las Vegas, the fight capital of the world. Rather, he has asked boxing to embrace Omaha. Look for Crawford to return to a Nebraska ring shortly, sacrificing box office sales.

Crawford made history Saturday, becoming the first male fighter to fully unify multiple divisions after holding all four belts at junior welterweight. Jim Gray asked him about what it means in the ring afterward:

"Bud Crawford, your name is now in the history books, a name that will never be forgotten."

To that, Crawford credited God:

"Like I said before, I want to give an honor to God. Without him, none of this would be possible. I am so blessed. I am an overachiever."

Crawford entered the night as the consensus pound-for-pound king. He departed Vegas as the unanimous.

He gave drive-by viewers a reason to come back, to follow boxing more carefully. He cemented himself as not only the best boxer of this generation, but among the most dominant athletes.

"I only dreamed of being a world champion," said Crawford after the fight. "Nobody believed in me when I was coming up, but I made everybody a believer."

Crawford made a believer of the 19,990 attendees at the T-Mobile Arena, most of whom were in awe walking out of the stadium into the hellacious Las Vegas heat.

Fight fans bantered on the streets about Crawford's greatness: Who can challenge him? Can he be beaten? Could he have beaten a prime Floyd Mayweather Jr?

For at least one night, Terence Crawford earned the merited shine that has eluded him.