Another fight, another easy victory for Terence Crawford?
That’s how it looks going into Saturday night, when Boxing Junkie’s No. 1 fighter pound for pound faces veteran Kell Brook inside the MGM Grand “bubble” in Las Vegas.
Crawford (36-0, 27 KOs) hasn’t fought since he stopped Egidijus Kavaliauskas in defense of his 147-pound title last December, his seventh consecutive knockout.
Brook (39-2, 27 KOs) has won three in a row since back-to-back knockout losses to Gennadiy Golovkin and Errol Spence Jr. in 2016 and 2017 but has been relatively inactive and will be moving down in weight, which isn’t easy at 34.
Of course, there are many questions going into the fight, as there are in any important matchup. Here are five of them.
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No. 1
How much does Brook have left?
Some. The Englishman was one of the top fighters in the world when he traveled to California and took American Shawn Porter’s world welterweight title by a majority decision. That was more than six years ago. Brook is no longer that fighter. He suffered gruesome knockout losses against Golovkin at middleweight and Spence at welterweight, both of which left him with broken facial bones and his career in taters. He has fought only three times – against mediocre opposition — since then, all at junior middleweight. We really don’t know how his body will react going back down to 147 for this fight. He clearly still has some ability. Just how much isn’t clear.
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No. 2
Does Brook have a realistic chance to win?
Yes. Crawford is a 7½-1 favorite, according to BetMGM, which is a wide margin in boxing. In other words, Brook has a small chance to win. Oddsmakers are obviously looking at what we mentioned above – his brutal losses, his inactivity and the fact he must move down in weight at 34 years old. And they’re looking at Crawford, who is universally accepted as one of the top handful of boxers in the world. Plus, Brook will be without longtime trainer Dominic Ingle. That combination – Brook’s liabilities, Crawford’s abilities and a new cornerman – make this an easy fight to predict. Of course, older fighters sometimes reach into the past and put together performances that shock everyone. That’s possible here. Brook has the talent and experience to pull an upset if he fights the perfect fight.
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No. 3
What does a victory do for Crawford’s career?
Not much. Crawford should be fighting the Errol Spences, Manny Pacquiaos, Keith Thurmans and Shawn Porters of the boxing world, not Brook. Alas, those fights haven’t happened for reasons we don’t have to get into here. The bottom line is that he’s fighting another in a string of opponents who are good but not in his class, at least at the time he fought them. And victories are gauged by the quality of opposition. Crawford will likely defeat Brook handily on Saturday night. And people who took the time to watch will say, “Well, that was predictable.” The fight is important for Crawford because he needs to get back into the ring after 11 months away to shake off any rust. It means little beyond that.
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No. 4
What does a victory do for Brook’s career?
Everything. A victory for Brook would constitute one of the most-spectacular comebacks in recent years. In one stroke, he would regain a 147-pound title and become a major player again in one of the sport’s most-lucrative divisions. That’s why he seems to be particularly motivated for this fight. He knows it’s his chance – maybe his last chance — to turn around his floundering career. Remember: Brook arguably hasn’t had an important victory since the Porter fight in 2014. That’s an eternity in boxing. Crawford is taking nothing for granted against Brook for the reason described here: He knows as well as we do that his opponent is hungry.
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No. 5
Is this Crawford’s last fight with Top Rank?
Could be. His contract with the promotional company expires next year, according to reports. That would free him up to sign with any promoter he chooses, including Premier Boxing Champions. Top Rank has done a good job of guiding him to stardom but the pool of potential opponents has dried up, which is one reason he’s fighting Brook. A move to PBC would make sense because that’s where almost all of the top welterweights reside. That includes the fighters mentioned above, Spence, Pacquiao, Thurman and Porter, as well as others. The big fights could be around the corner for Crawford.
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