TERENCE CRAWFORD: ?IS MANNY PACQUIAO WILLING TO FIGHT ME??
By Dong Secuya
PhilBoxing.com
Fri, 27 Oct 2017
Aboard the Norwegian Sky ? Former unified 140 lb belt holder Terence Crawford who is considered the No. 1 pound for pound fighter by many, has been designated by the WBO as the mandatory challenger to the Horn-Corcoran fight scheduled on Dec. 13 in Brisbane, Australia.
Asked if he was willing to face Manny Pacquiao if he wins the WBO welterweight belt, the belt the Pacquiao lost to Horn in a controversial fashion last July, Crawford said, ?That's not the question. The question is, is Pacquiao willing to fight me??
Pacquiao refused to fight Horn in an immediate rematch in Australia originally scheduled for Nov. 12 and wanted to bring the fight to the Philippines. The Horn camp instead picked the No. 10 ranked Gary Corcoran of England and was looking to stage the rematch with Pacquiao early next year. But with the WBO's ruling, Pacquiao seems to be left out of the loop. And nobody knows what is Pacquiao's current plan. Will he fight again or retire?
If a Pacquiao-Crawford fight will push thru, it will be a pairing of an old guard who is on the sunset of his illustrious career against a young lion who is currently at the top of the world. Pacquiao will be 39 next month while Crawford has just turned 30. Many, including Pacquiao's hall of fame trainer Freddie Roach, had doubts if Pacquiao had enough left of himself to take on a complete fighter like Crawford. But Pacquiao had come back many times and beat almost insurmountable odds many times to confound his naysayers and many of his avid followers just won't write him off against any opponent no matter what.
Terence Crawford receives the WBO fighter of the year award from WBO president Francisco 'Paco' Valcarcel (L) and WBO first vice-president John Duggan (R).
Meanwhile, Terence Crawford received another 'Fighter of the Year' award from the WBO as the organization's 30th convention came to a close here Thursday night.
Crawford, in his acceptance speech, said: ?I am glad to receive another 'Fighter of the Year' award from the WBO as was last year. Next year, I intend to win another 'Fighter of the Year' award.?
WBO president Francisco 'Paco' Valcarcel said Crawford has now become the face of the WBO.
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