After months of tense negotiations and public posturing, the negotiations between WBO welterweight champion Terence Crawford and WBC, WBA and IBF counterpart Errol Spence Jr have resulted in a fight. For some ungodly reason, that fight is Crawford defending his title against European welterweight champion David Avanesyan.
Once again, boxing has shot itself in the foot. I wrote on these pages not long ago that men’s boxing can’t get out of its own way. With the erosion of Crawford-Spence, boxing is not just in its own way, it has erected a wall around itself to insulate itself from anything resembling common sense.
As always in these cases, the fighters are blaming each other. Without being allowed in the negotiating room, it is hard to ascertain exactly where the blame lies. But if both men were as serious about this bout as the fans are, they would get it made. The same could be said about Tyson Fury-Anthony Joshua and its own mutation into Fury-Derek Chisora, a fight up there with Crawford-Avanesyan on a list of bouts nobody asked for.
Avanesyan is not a shameful world title challenger by any stretch. He is a former WBA belt-holder and is currently enjoying one of the best runs of his career. The Russian is on a run of six consecutive knockout wins. But none of those have come at a level approaching that at which ‘Bud’ Crawford or Spence reside. Avanesyan is a solid B-tier welterweight that we’re being fed in lieu of a generation-defining superfight.
Men’s boxing does this regularly. Manny Pacquiao and Floyd Mayweather met five years too late. Kell Brook and Amir Khan’s bout earlier this year, as good as it was, was arguably a decade past its sell-by date. Other bouts never happen at all. This is perhaps the greatest fear surrounding Crawford and Spence. 35 and 32 respectively, there isn’t a huge window of opportunity to stage the bout.
Crawford’s fight will push this potential bout back further, and that’s if he wins. If Avanesyan pulls off a miracle, we could lose the Spence clash forever. Equally, Spence himself is likely to seek an opponent of his own now. That comes with its own set of challenges. Either man could get injured or beaten in these bouts. When a boxer enters his 30s the chances of both increase. This is a welterweight superfight that sits on a knife edge.
The reason the collapse in negotiations stings so much is quite simply because Crawford vs Spence is a brilliant fight. It is exactly what boxing needs in order to put its best foot forward. The two dominant 147-pounders of recent years, both unbeaten, meeting with all four of the welterweight title belts on the line. It really does tick every box for a modern superfight.
For months, each man has had a clear schedule. The timing was there. The dialogue was taking place. Whatever the reasons for this bout collapsing, they simply aren’t good enough. Crawford, Spence and those who handle the business end owe it to the fans and the sport to stage this fight. Hopefully it can be salvaged, hopefully all is not lost. Crawford vs Spence should not exist in heated “who would win?” forum debates or fantasy articles. It should exist in a boxing ring where we can all experience it. This sport at its best is truly special. Far too often, those in control don’t allow it to be.
*18+ | BeGambleAware | Odds Subject To Change
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