Crawford: A Dominating Win Over Porter Will Boost Status As Pound-For-Pound No. 1

Terence Crawford will be presented with the toughest test of his 13-year professional career when he takes on Shawn Porter next month in an ESPN+ pay-per-view show at the Mandalay Bay in Las Vegas.

He knows it as well.

“It’s put up or shut up. In my eyes, I can stand up and pull my shirt out and I can really show this 8-pack I got because you know I stay working. I stay working,” said Crawford. “That is nothing new to me, and it isn’t anything new to you. You know what you are up against on November 20. I know what I’m against on November 20.” 

The 34-year old WBO welterweight champion Crawford (3-0, 28 KOs) and former 147-pound champion Porter (31-3-1, 17 KOs) have been cordial and maintained a good relationship with one another ever since the amateur days.

But that changed once the WBO ordered them to face one another, and come fight night, the fighter nickname “Bud” will have bad intentions. 

“There has never been any bad blood. It’s always been all love, but come November 20, we step on him,” said Crawford. 

The three-division champion Crawford has long been considered one of the sport’s elite fighters and has been battling for pole position in recent years with the likes of Canelo Alvarez, Naoya Inoue and Errol Spence Jr. for top pound-for-pound status. 

The Nebraska native believes that by beating Porter, he should be considered boxing’s best fighter.

“A dominating win against Porter will boost my status as the number one pound-for-pound fighter in the world,” said Crawford. “Unlike other fighters that [Porter] fought, I’m different. I believe you know that I’m different. The more you push, the more I will push. You hit me hard, and l will hit you even harder if you can last. That’s what makes this fight a great fight. 

Manouk Akopyan is a sports journalist, writer and broadcast reporter. He’s also a member of the Boxing Writers Association of America and MMA Journalists Association. He can be reached on Twitter, Instagram, LinkedIn and YouTube at @ManoukAkopyan, via email at manouk[dot]akopyan[at]gmail.com or on www.ManoukAkopyan.com