Boxing
How much can Spence vs. Crawford be predicted using their common experience against Shawn Porter?
Watch Spence vs. Crawford on Showtime (US only)
Using performances against a common opponent to predict a fight can yield quality results, yet also those with limitations.
And leading up to the Errol Spence Jr. vs. Terence Crawford undisputed welterweight championship fight on Saturday night, there has been plenty of focus on judging their respective performance against Shawn Porter as a possible indicator to help lean toward “The Truth” or “Bud”.
So what does Porter himself have to say about it?
Spence defeated the then-WBC titleholder via split decision to become a unified welterweight champ in September 2019. More than two years later in November 2021, Crawford successfully defended his WBO welterweight title with a 10th-round TKO of Porter.
During separate sitdowns with Premier Boxing Champions, each Spence and Crawford felt like they handled Porter more effectively - no surprise there!
Spence believes his victory over Porter stripped the latter of some of his boxing abilities, making him a softer target for Crawford. “Bud” does not buy that notion, pointing to the stoppage against Porter that Spence was not able to deliver — though “The Truth” did register a flash knockdown of “Showtime” in the 11th round of their fight.
All this being said, just how much can Spence’s points win over Porter and Crawford’s TKO of Porter be used as a litmus test in making a prediction for Spence vs. Crawford? And how much does their common opponent experience matter?
Well, Porter, speaking on a recently-uploaded clip on The Porter Way Podcast, attempted to bring fans a bit closer to answering those questions by bringing them into his mindset before and after both experiences.
“They both fought me but I was not the same person all the way around the board when I was in the ring against Crawford as I was against Spence. What I’m trying to say is when y’all are looking at resumes, y’all are saying, ‘[Crawford] ain’t fight nobody yet’. It don’t even matter. [Crawford] is who he is. It doesn’t even matter.”
He added: “I think I was a better fighter when I fought Crawford but there were certain things that I didn’t have in that fight against Crawford that I had against Spence.”
Whether those comments help one lean toward Spence or Crawford in what's deemed a 50-50 fight remains to be seen.
