Terence Crawford is in New York for some mandatory business Saturday, favored to beat Lithuanian welterweight challenger Egidijus Kavaliauskas at Madison Square Garden and still ranked first or second in the pound-pound debate, yet uncertain about what awaits him in 2020.
Crawford hears rumors and smiles. Depending on the day or perhaps the hour, Floyd Mayweather is coming back. Or maybe not. It’s still not clear what Errol Spence Jr. will do two months after he was thrown from his Ferrari in a scary wreck on Oct. 10 in Dallas.
Crawford was asked about both this week in a media tour that included Ariel Helwani’s MMA Show on ESPN, which will televise his title defense after college football crowns its pound-for-pound best with the Heisman.
Question: Who does he have a better chance at fighting next year, Mayweather or Spence?
“Neither,’’ Crawford said.
2020…………..why not? @FloydMayweather #CrawfordMayweather pic.twitter.com/UuYigjY6sK
— Terence Crawford (@terencecrawford) November 23, 2019
Even if Mayweather does come back for more than an exhibition, the feared Crawford doesn’t expect to be anywhere on his list of potential opponents.
“That fight will never happen, I believe,’’ he said.
Meanwhile, there’s been no word on what Spence plans to do.
“Me and Spence fight, I don’t really know,’’ Crawford said. “I don’t know his health reasons right now. I know when he comes back to the fight game, he’s not itching to get back in the ring against me right off the injuries.’’
There had been a groundswell of talk from fans and media, all urging Crawford-vs.-Spence, in the immediate aftermath of Spence’s split-decision over Shawn Porter for two welterweight belts on Sept. 28 in Los Angeles. But there’s only been silence since Spence’s single-car crash.