By Chris Williams: Shawn Porter says Errol Spence will have a huge advantage over Terence Crawford with his physical presence and high punching power on July 29.
Although Porter rates WBO welterweight champion Crawford (39-0, 30 KOs), he is unable to match IBW, WBA and WBC champion Spence (28-0, 22 KOs) with his punching volume.
Crawford has been a pot fighter for his entire fifteen-year professional career, and he won’t change now at 36.
Some boxing fans compare Crawford’s fighting style to Sugar Ray Leonard, but this author sees no similarity between them. Maybe an old Leonard in his last fight, but not the young Sugar Ray.
How will Crawford fight Spence? We’ll likely see Terence circling the ring all night, throwing single-goal shots and tying Spence up to keep him from getting hit.
If you look at Crawford’s fights against David Avanesyan and Ray Beltran, that’s how he will face Spence. In other words, Crawford will move, jab, pot-shot and tie Spence. This will rinse and repeat overnight. Move, sting, pot shot and clinch when Speence closes in.
This won’t be a Sugar Ray Leonard fight since Crawford on July 29. It will be more like an older Mayweather but without the hand speed.
Spence has to cut the ring
“The first thing that came to mind was Errol Spence’s work rate. He obviously has a great presence in the ring, and when he uses that presence and when he adds to it by working and staying in your face, double punches and straight lefts and continually trying to work and apply smart pressure Shawn Porter told Boxing Social about what Errol Spence Jr has in his favor against Terence Crawford.
If Spence can get to Crawford frequently, he’ll ruin his world and make him miserable because there’s no way the Omaha native can match Errol blow for blow.
Again, Crawford won’t even try because he doesn’t like being hit and he knows he can’t throw a lot of punches.
Will Crawford stand in the pocket against Spence? This is a negative point. Crawford doesn’t fight like that. He’s a mover and he’ll look to slow down Spence’s punch production by staying in motion for three minutes each round and tying him down in a clinch.
Crawford has a wrestling background, so Spence won’t be able to get him off when he lands.
It will take the referee to pull Crawford out of Spence each time, consuming large portions of each round. Holding and moving Crawford will prevent Spence from throwing more than 15-20 punches per round instead of 80-100.
Crawford goes boxing
“To me, that’s where he has a huge advantage in this fight if you want to call it an advantage. The other side of that is range and distance, for Terence Crawford, is almost invisible,” Porter said. “It’s like you know where it is, and instantly it does.
“He can take it from you and make it look like it’s there, and then he can take it away from you just as quickly. Terence has the ability to work from the outside and then the subtle moves he makes. He’s not a predictable fighter. I think that’s another strong side or advantage,” Porter said.
Is it possible for Crawford to beat Spence by staying out all night? Not if Spence is ready to box as well as he did in his fight with Mikey Garcia.
If you’re Spence, you have to be prepared to box Crawford if he still can’t get to him. Crawford’s movement and hold will prevent Spence from using his superior power, size and work rate to dominate.
“When you talk about advantage, there are no real advantages in this fight. People try to make it, but there really isn’t any,” Porter said.
“I think there are a lot of interesting elements to this fight. Both guys can end this in the first round. It’s something I don’t see, but it could happen.
“If there’s a crazy knockout in this fight in round one or ten, then there’s no reason to see a rematch, especially if we get a knockout between round one and round five. There really is no need for revenge.
“If this fight goes the distance or if we get a draw, we are probably looking at a fight that could be a draw. If we don’t get a draw, we’re seeing an incredible fight that deserves an instant replay,” Porter said of Spence vs. Crawford.
