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Trainer Robert Garcia says Canelo Alvarez will fight Terence Crawford in May 2025. However, he does not see Crawford winning because he is getting older and Canelo is naturally stronger than him.
He also takes a good shot and has been hit by stronger hitters than Crawford, who looked weak in his 154 debut against Israil Madrimov on August 3.
The Crawford Age and Decline
Robert says Crawford isn’t avoiding a fight against interim WBC 154 lb. champion Vergil Ortiz Jr. He just feels the 37-year-old Crawford (41-0, 31 KOs) is getting old and wants to get the most money possible before he retires soon.
Garcia says Crawford could make three times more money fighting Canelo (62-2-2, 39 KOs) than Vergil Jr. If Turki Alalshikh is willing to pay Canelo a huge amount of money to fight the older, thinner and weaker Crawford, the fight can happen.
Given that Terence would debut at 168, moving up two weight classes, it would be impossible to see a scenario where he could win. It would be a fight on a business level.
A combination of celebrities
When you get a fighter as old as Crawford, who didn’t look good in his debut at 154, and he goes two more weight classes to 168, it’s not a serious fight. It’s a celebrity match.
For that to be serious, Crawford would have to get to 168 and prove himself against the best contenders. If he succeeds in three or four tough fights, then he could face Canelo.
Terence’s path to legitimacy
Put Crawford with these three to allow him to prove he’s worthy of a fight with King Canelo:
- David Benavidez
- David Morrell
- Osley Iglesias
He’s not interested in proving himself with a single fight at 168; it just shows you what he’s looking for. It’s money, NOT inheritance. It’s a joke. It has nothing to do with Crawford’s purpose.
If this were the real world, Crawford would have to move up to 168 and gain the prerequisite experience to prove he’s fit for the position and deserves it.
Terence doesn’t have to do that here and the ones who will lose are the fans because Canelo will wipe him out or make him very, very boring like Jermell Charlo did when he moved up from 154 in 2023 to challenge Canelo. Jermell is bigger, faster and stronger than Crawford.
He couldn’t do anything with Canelo and was forced to run to save his own skin. The fight was unwatchable, but Charlo got his big payday and hasn’t been seen since he’s been in the ring. It was a payoff for him, and the fans got a bad product for the money they paid to see the fight on PPV.
Financial motives
“We would immediately accept the fight. It’s not an easy fight. Crawford is a great fighter, pound-for-pound #1, #2 or #3,” said Robert Garcia to Fighthype when asked about his interest in a fight between Vergil Ortiz Jr. and Terence Crawford.
“He is already 37 years old, he is asking for the highest salary. “I think he’s looking at the Canelo fight, where he would triple the money he could make against Vergil,” Robert said of Crawford. “So he’s just playing smart. I don’t blame him. He is already 37 years old and looking at the best fights for himself when it comes to finances.
“What I’m hearing is that it (Canelo-Crawford) could happen by May. I think Crawford is one of the best fighters in the world, but he is getting older. We won’t know until he fights again. There is that chance. That’s what happens in boxing,” Garcia said of fighters who age overnight, especially when they’re nearing their late 30s, like Crawford.
Terence is getting old and approaching 38. He looked terrible in his last fight against Madrimov at 154, and would likely be destroyed in a rematch or if he were to face that weight, IBF junior middleweight champion Bakhram Muratazaliev. That guy is now fighting at a higher level than Canelo and has more power. What he would do to Crawford with his left hook would not be pretty.
“I choose Canelo. He’s bigger, stronger (and younger than Crawford). Canelo can take a very good punch. I see Crawford putting up a good fight. Cnaleo is a physically bigger guy, stronger,” Garcia said.
