This Saturday’s fight between Errol Spence and Terence Crawford is the big one, the main event of all events, an extravaganza. It is the Super Bowl but with even more buildup. Every Super Bowl is one year in the making. The path to Spence vs. Crawford has featured five years full of anticipation, hope, frustration, and, at last, excitement. How could any boxing fan not be excited? The fight — THE fight — is nearly here.
Spence (28-0, 22 knockouts) and Crawford (39-0, 30 KOs) are far and away the two best welterweights in the world. They rank highly on pound-for-pound lists as two of the best boxers in the entire sport. They hold all of the major world titles in the 147-pound division.
The winner will establish a new championship lineage — being “the man” — years after Manny Pacquiao and Floyd Mayweather reigned. And beyond lineage, he will also be crowned the undisputed champion, the first of this four-belt era. They will be the face of one of boxing’s most storied weight classes, following a long line of greats like Sugar Ray Leonard, Pernell Whitaker, Oscar De La Hoya, Felix Trinidad, Shane Mosley, Mayweather, and Pacquiao. Each of those names had at least one collision in the division against another superstar of comparable wattage and considerable talent. Spence and Crawford long ago earned the acclaim that makes this fight such a big one. Yet they still need this just as much as we do.
It’s fair to describe these past five years as half a decade of delayed gratification, of Spence and Crawford dancing around each other rather than with each other, kept away largely because of promotional and network affiliations. Thankfully, these five years haven’t meant that the fight has marinated for too long. Somehow, the wait has made this even bigger.
2019
2020
The pandemic shuts down sports, and the world in general. And even as things begin to reopen and resume, safety measures limit the number of fans who can be in an arena — which means less money for major fights. As such, Crawford and Spence only appear once:
2021
Both Spence and Crawford are seeking fights with Pacquiao, not just for the sizable payday but also for the last remaining belt — the WBA, which Pacquiao had picked up from Thurman. Spence and his team make the deal, but the fight never happens.
August: Spence has to pull out of the Pacquiao fight with an injured retina. Instead, Yordenis Ugas steps in and retires Pacquiao.
November: Crawford takes on Porter, now a former titleholder but still a tough out. In fact, Porter is ahead on the scorecards after nine rounds. Crawford is told he could very well be behind, and he comes out and scores two knockdowns for the win, sending Porter into retirement. Afterward, Crawford announces that his time with Top Rank is over. Suddenly, the road to Spence vs. Crawford seems much clearer. But it’s still a ways off in the distance
2022
2023
Spence and Crawford reach a deal in May! The boxing world rejoices.
Here we are, then. Errol Spence vs. Terence Crawford, live from the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas on Saturday, July 29, 2023.
Spence, now 33 years old, comes in having made six title defenses and has faced the better slate of opposition at welterweight. He has three world titles and needs to beat Crawford to capture the fourth and earn undisputed status.
Crawford, who is 35, has also had six title defenses at 147. He’s won all seven of his fights in this division by KO or TKO — and his knockout streak totals 10 straight. Crawford arrives as the former Ring champion at 135, the former undisputed champion at 140, and is on the verge of becoming undisputed in a second weight class.
It is the Super Bowl. Five years in the making, now just days away. How could any boxing fan not be excited? The fight — THE fight — is nearly here.
