Who is the better fighter? Ex-rival settles the Canelo Alvarez vs. Terence Crawford debate and crowns the “pound-for-pound” king of boxing
A former opponent of Canelo Alvarez and Terence Crawford has revealed who he believes is the number one pound-for-pound boxer.
Over the past few years, Canelo has been considered the biggest superstar in professional boxing, with Tyson Fury closely behind. Yet, the P4P rankings aren’t a popularity contest, leading to most credible outlets having the Mexican-born fighter outside the top three.
Meanwhile, Crawford separated himself as arguably the P4P king following his one-sided win against Errol Spence Jr. in July. The welterweight world champion has officially received the respect he’s earned throughout his forty-fight professional boxing career.
During an interview with Fight Hub TV, Amir Khan, who has fought both Canelo and Crawford, had this to say about who the better fighter is:
“Pound-for-pound, the best fighter is [Terence] Crawford. He beats anyone. Canelo [Alvarez] is stronger and easily hit, very easily hit, very easily compared to when I fought against Crawford. Crawford, I couldn’t hit clean. So, really, that’s the difference. They both hit hard. I could see that strength when I was fighting against Crawford. I didn’t think Crawford is that strong.”
Amir Khan fought Canelo Alvarez in May 2016, losing by sixth-round knockout. Following two bounce-back wins, Khan took on Terence Crawford in April 2019, when he suffered another sixth-round knockout loss.
Watch Amir Khan talk about Canelo Alvarez and Terence Crawford below:
What’s next for Canelo Alvarez and Terence Crawford?
Canelo Alvarez last fought on September 30 against Jermell Charlo. The Mexican superstar battered Charlo throughout the fight to leave the T-Mobile Arena with the undisputed super middleweight world titles.
Canelo is a massive draw in professional boxing, so he has plenty of options for his next fight, which is expected to take place in the first half of 2024. The most likely opponent for the 33-year-old is David Benavidez (28-0).
As for Terence Crawford, he hopes to secure a fight against Canelo following his impressive win against Errol Spence Jr. With that said, Crawford has been tied to rumors about a potential immediate rematch against Spence Jr. for his first boxing match of 2024.
It should be noted that Crawford still hopes to fight Canelo in the upcoming calendar year.