Boxing purist will love it, but will anyone else?
By Kenneth Miller, Publisher
I can see the eyeballs rolling now. What the F***k is this guy talking about?
It’s the match-up that we’ve all been dreaming of! The battle of the two undefeated welterweights for the undisputed championship.
What could possibly be better than that? Errol Spence, Jr. and Terrance Crawford, 33 and 35 years old respectively who both hail from the midwestern parts of the United States. Spence, Jr. was born in Long Island, but is from Desoto, Texas and Crawford is from Omaha, Nebraska.
As the first of the two mega pressers unfolded at the Beverly Hills Hotel this week with an elegant breakfast on the menu in a ballroom stuffed with internet boxing geeks, both fighters were casually outfitted for the occasion.
Spence wore a shirt that looked like he was wearing two shoulder purses and Crawford sported a bright red polo and blue jeans. No bling! No rings!
Showtime ring announcer Jimmy Lennon, Jr. and boxing host the affable Brian Custer did their darndest to spike up the confab, showering the audience with the boxers glowing resumes.
Both are southpaws, meaning they lead with their right foot, Spence is 28-0, Crawford 39-0, with more knockouts (30) than Spence has fights.
Throw out any comparisons of fighters of bygone years such as Tommy Hearns, the late Marvin Hagler, Sugar Ray Leonard or even Floyd Mayweather and Manny Pacquaio.
Back in the days of Ali, Frazier or even Mike Tyson, boxing was the only game in town. The fighters represented far more than the sport itself.
Today, in the social media frenzied universe, the competition for the dollar and the attention is much greater. MMA has torpedoed boxing. WWE is must see entertainment and then you have the big three, football, basketball and baseball all clamoring for attention.
And there are former YouTube sensations masquerading as boxers and former boxing greats fighting fake exhibitions.
Spence said it best when he opined that this is throw-back fight to a bygone era when movie stars from Hollywood and other sports ate up the ring side seats.
This sport did more to put Las Vegas on the map than Bugsy Siegel, which makes the T-Mobile Arena best suited to host this bonanza.
People came to see Mayweather because they hated him and wanted to see him lose, and he had a cache of rapper personalities that carried his water.
Mayweather wore so much jewelry he would make Don King look like a Mr. T starters kit.
However, PBC, Tom Brown and Showtime are smart enough to know when they got a good the real thing.
So, they only rolled out the principles. These two modest, well Spence crashed his car, superstars who are simply just great fighters.
Crawford was quick to point out to Spence that no one on his side drinks.
How, Showtime plans on teasing All Access promos leading up to the fight with these two is going to be interesting.
This is going to be a slow moving chess match that will ultimately explode with two guys that can hurt you with either hand. I give Spence the edge in the power department, but I give Crawford the edge for balance and technique.
Crawford opened as a -120 favorite to win the fight, but I think this will be a case similar to when Mayweather waited Pacquaio out, and won a snoozer. Spence will win this fight, but the question remains as to how many people will buy the damn thing. Crawford is a Pay per View bust, Spence eclipse 250k in his last. Let’s see…
