Major changes in the future of Terence Crawford as a new champion emerges as the front-runner for his 154-pound debut
Terence Crawford's time at welterweight appears to be well and truly over, with the former undisputed 147 pound champion now firmly focused on potential suitors at super welterweight.
'Bud' used his status as a WBO 'super champion' to become the mandatory challenger for the WBO 154 pound title, which was recently contested between Tim Tszyu and Sebastian Fundora.
After a brutal 12-round war, Fundora was crowned the new champion via split-decision, and Crawford's next opponent seemed to have been decided.
'The Towering Inferno' initially appeared interested in a clash with 'Bud'. However, Fundora's manager recently claimed that Crawford's style was "boring", and indicated that they had little interest in the matchup.
ESPN boxing analyst, @BarbosaBox, has now reported that the American's super welterweight debut could likely come against the division's WBA champion, Israil Madrimov.
He took to X and wrote the following:
"It's great Terence Crawford has Saudi support. He is definitely the #2 or #1 (for some) P4P fighter in the world. Israil Madrimov emerging as the front runner for his debut at 154 [pounds]. Solid match. Looking forward."
See @BarbosaBox's post below:
Roy Jones Jr. declares Terence Crawford the No.1 P4P king
Terence Crawford is one of the biggest stars in boxing right now.
The Nebraska native holds a record of 40-0, and has stopped his last 11 opponents. 'Bud' most recently faced off against fellow pound-for-pound great, Errol Spence Jr., with both men vying to become the first undisputed welterweight champion of the 'four belt era'.
Crawford dismantled his opponent en route to a TKO victory in Round 9, and made history by becoming the first male boxer to be crowned an undisputed champion in two weight divisions.
His impressive achievement was swiftly replicated by Naoya Inoue, who defeated Marlon Tapales via TKO in December to become the undisputed super bantamweight king.
While some fans regard Inoue as the No.1 P4P boxer in the world, boxing legend and Hall of Famer Roy Jones Jr. declared that 'Bud' was the sport's P4P best during a recent interview.
Jones Jr. was speaking to talkSPORT when he said this:
"Right now the true P4P king is Terence Crawford, with the kid, Inoue, right on his back. I'm going to tell you why, Crawford has been dominating for the last ten years. Ain't nobody been close. The only reason he ain't get the P4P title earlier is because nobody that was high enough on the ladder would give him the opportunity."
Watch Roy Jones Jr.'s interview below from 11:00: jjjj