Boxing
Terence Crawford 'surprise' teased as timeline emerges for major announcement
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Boxing’s kingmaker Turki Alalshikh has teased an upcoming ‘surprise’ from undisputed super middleweight champion Terence Crawford, but only after a period of rest for the fighter.
Crawford upset the odds to defeat the king at 168lbs, Saul ‘Canelo’ Alvarez, with a unanimous decision win in September. Victory for Crawford saw the Omaha native create history, becoming the first man to reign as undisputed champion in three separate weight classes during the four-belt era.
Immediately after the Canelo fight, speculation began over Crawford’s future. Recently turning 38, ‘Bud’ has hinted at dropping down to 160lbs to chase a world title in a sixth division, whilst there is also the possibility of staying at 168lbs to defend his titles at super middleweight.
Now, Alalshikh has hinted Crawford will be making a major announcement soon. Speaking to The Ring, Alalshikh commented: “The champ has a lot of surprises for his city and for the future. He wants to rest now for one or two months, then we will tell you the surprise.”
Whilst Canelo signed a four-fight deal with Alalshikh’s Riyadh Season earlier this year, there was no announcement that Crawford had penned a similar long-term agreement.
However, Crawford has previously spoken about his friendship with Alalshikh, stating that the chairman of the Saudi Arabia General Entertainment Authority had given him leverage in negotiating previous fights.
His fight at 154lbs with Israil Madrimov headlined a Riyadh Season-backed card in Los Angeles in August 2024.
In the immediate aftermath of Crawford’s win over Canelo, Alalshikh took to Twitter to propose another super-fight, pondering if WBC light heavyweight world champion David Benavidez would be able to drop back to 168lbs.
Crawford remained coy on his future when interviewed directly after his win over Canelo, refusing to rule out retirement. When asked if he was contemplating leaving the sport after 42 wins from 42 bouts, Crawford stated: “I don’t know (if this is the last fight of my career). I’ve got to sit down with my team and we'll talk about it.”
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