Tale of the Tape: Errol Spence Jr. vs. Terence Crawford
We look at how Errol Spence Jr., the owner of three welterweight titles, stacks up against WBO strap holder Terence Crawford ahead of one of the most anticipated fights of the decade Saturday in Las Vegas. Odds courtesy theScore Bet and Barstool Sportsbook.
It's finally going to happen.
Terence "Bud" Crawford will take on Errol Spence Jr., with the winner becoming the undisputed welterweight champion of the world and cementing themselves as boxing's best pound-for-pound fighter.
Boxing fans everywhere have been clamoring for the superfight between the two welterweight stars for six years. After stalled negotiations - Spence recently admitted talks took so long to finalize because both teams couldn't decide who would be the A-side - it all goes down Saturday in Las Vegas.
"I'm the guy for sure, I'm the A-side," Spence said on an episode of the Pivot Podcast. "He just didn't want to believe that I'm the big dog when we talk about ticket sales, when we talk about putting butts in the seats, all that.
“(Crawford) didn't want to believe that. He was like 'well, I did this, I won these belts, I did this.' That's cool, but try to take that to the bank."
No matter who considers themselves the bigger draw, the two boxing greats will surely put on a show in front of a jammed audience at the T-Mobile Arena, while millions more watch the two square off on television.
"The Truth" enters Saturday with a 28-0 record that includes four consecutive victories over stiff competition in Mikey Garcia, Shawn Porter, Danny Garcia, and Yordenis Ugas.
A Texas heat wave has greatly affected Spence's ability to train properly, but it's just another hurdle for the resilient champion. He defeated Danny Garcia in December 2020 a little over a year after a car accident put him in intensive care and took down Ugas by 10th-round TKO nine months after suffering a retinal tear in his eye in August 2021.
Meanwhile, Crawford has successfully defended his WBO title six times since taking the strap from Jeff Horn in 2018, defeating Jose Benavidez Jr., Amir Khan, Egidijus Kavaliauskas, Kell Brook, Shawn Porter, and David Avanesyan.
The southpaw owns an impressive 39-0 record, which includes a run as undisputed champion at junior welterweight. Crawford enters Saturday confident that his record will stay pristine. "You're going to see a new undisputed welterweight champion from Omaha, Nebraska," he said.
Will Crawford's athleticism, reach advantage, and ability to constantly switch stances give him the advantage over Spence? Or will Spence use his superior boxing skill and Derrick James's cerebral training methods to become the first person to conquer Crawford?
All of the marbles are on the line Saturday as two all-time greats go head-to-head for division supremacy in Las Vegas.