SPORTS FACTS AND FIGURES 11: TERENCE CRAWFORD CAN BEAT CANELO ALVAREZ SAYS LENNOX LEWIS
By Maloney L. Samaco
PhilBoxing.com
Thu, 11 Jan 2024
There are reports circulating that Terence Crawford, one of the best fighters at present would like to fight Saul Canelo Alvarez, who is another great boxer. Former heavyweight champion Lennox Lewis suggested how Crawford can possibly beat Alvarez.
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Crawford defeated Julius Indongo on August 19, 2017 at the Pinnacle Bank Arena in Lincoln, Nebraska via third-round KO to become undisputed champion in the super lightweight division. Then he stopped Errol Spence Jr. on July 29, 2023 at the T-Mobile Arena in Paradise, Nevada via ninth-round technical knockout to become an undisputed champion in the welterweight division.
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Crawford is one of the very few two-time undisputed champions in boxing history. He is the first male to win the undisputed championship in two weight classes in the four belt era. In the dream of becoming a three-time undisputed champion, Crawford called on the undisputed super middleweight champion Canelo Alvarez.
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Asked if Crawford could really defeat Canelo, who’s only been defeated twice in his 64-fight career. The losses were dealt with by Dmitry Bivol and Floyd Mayweather Jr. “It’s a possibility,” said Lewis to Fight Hub TV. “Let me tell you about Terence Crawford, that man is Kung Fu. You know, when you watch a martial arts movie, you know, you think of him, because he’s full with his style, great with his style. He’s got power, he’s got poise, he’s got speed, he’s got movement,” added Lewis.
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Lewis commented that there is a strategy to beat Canelo that hardly any fighter has studied. Bivol’s victory over the Mexican fighter was due to the former’s weight advantage. While Mayweather fought a Canelo who was still a young boxer, and "Money" was still in his prime.
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Lewis suggested that the "art of jabs" can make Crawford win. "The Lion" Lewis was famous and even dreaded for his patented jab that he had mastered early in his fighting career. His trademark straight right hand has crushed Mike Tyson and Evander Holyfield. He recalled back at how his jab ushered him to boxing heights, with a record of only two defeats in his 45-fight fighting career, and he thinks the hard stinging jabs could topple Alvarez.
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He further manifested, “I know every great heavyweight has a jab. Even the lighter weights, they’re not using the jabs. They’re forgetting that the jab is the main weapon of a fighter. The first weapon of a fighter is a jab, and after that, it’s a right-hand hook, uppercut. But first, you gotta establish your jab.”
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Terence Crawford is eyeing a date for his rematch with Errol Spence Jr. And if that happens, the boxing world has to wait if he gets into a fight with Canelo Alvarez.
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Saul Canelo Alvarez is the first and only boxer in history to become undisputed champion at super middleweight, having held the World Boxing Association (WBA) Super, World Boxing Council (WBC) and Ring magazine titles since 2020, and the International Boxing Federation (IBF) and World Boxing Organization (WBO) titles since 2021.
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He was born Santos Saúl Álvarez Barragán on July 18, 1990 (age 33) at Guadalajara, Jalisco, Mexico. His nickname Canelo means "Cinnamon" which is a common nickname for people with red hair. He stood 5 ft 8 in (173 cm) with a reach of 70+1⁄2 in (179 cm) with an Orthodox stance.
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Boxing record
Total fights: 64
Wins: 60
Wins by KO: 39
Losses: 2
Draws: 2
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Alvarez is the youngest of eight children, seven of them boys; all of his brothers also became professional boxers. Among his brothers are welterweight boxers Ramón Alvarez, Ricardo Alvarez and former WBA interim world champion, Rigoberto Alvarez.
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Sports History: January 11, 1984. The highest-scoring NBA game between Denver Nuggets 163, San Antonio Spurs 155.
Click here to view a list of other articles written by Maloney L. Samaco.
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