Promoter Eddie Hearn still views Israil Madrimov as the #1 fighter at 154 after what he feels was a controversial loss to famous pound-for-pound star Terence Crawford on August 3rd in Los Angeles.
Hearn says that people who view Crawford as the best still consider Madrimov (10-0-1, 7 KOs) #2 because he came within a whisker of beating him on the scorecards for their headliner at the BMO Stadium in Las Vegas.
Unfortunately, there won’t be a rematch to clear up the controversy, but perhaps down the road if Crawford stays at 154 long enough to run out of viable opponents.
“I think people still don’t give Israil Madrimov enough credit. He is the best 154-pounder in the world. If you think he lost the fight, then he’s the second 154-pounder in the world,” said promoter Eddie Hearn to the Stomping Grounds YouTube channel, about his view that Israil Madrimov is still the best fighter in the 154-lb divisions despite his controversial loss to Terence Crawford on August 3rd.
Crawford is expected to fight for the WBC interim title against Vergil Ortiz Jr. rather than for a full belt, but that fight is more about business. If Crawford had the opportunity to fight for a world title against WBC/WBO 154-lb champion Sebastian Funfora, he’d take
Crawford at 168? ‘The Weight is Too Much’
“I think the weight is too much for Crawford, but it’s irrelevant because it ain’t happening,” Hearn said about the possibility of Crawford moving up to 168 for a fight against Canelo Alvarez. “We’ll see what happens with Crawford.”
We saw against Madrimov that Crawford doesn’t have the size or power to go further than 154 because he was the weaker fighter and looks afraid of fighting aggressively as he had in the past.
“He’s a very inactive fighter. He is getting on a bit [in age]. He’s made a lot of money,” said Hearn about Crawford. “What are the hunger levels like? Does he want to go through another division to become undisputed? Good luck if he does.”
Crawford fights once and has been doing that since 2020. He’s done for the rest of 2024 after having fought once, and doesn’t plan on fighting until February 2025. He turns 37 in September, and he’ll be turning 38 next year.
“He’s a generational great, but I do feel like the weight definitely at 168 would be too much,” said Hearn.
Making Big Fights
“There are loads of fights His Excellency Turki has wanted to happen but didn’t happen, but this happens to be a high-profile one,” said Hearn about a fight between Canelo Alvarez and Crawford. “This is someone who does what he wants, which is Saul, and someone who has his own plans and ideas, which is His Excellency.”
Canelo would be interested in fighting Crawford if His Excellency waited until after his fight with Edgar Berlanga on September 14th to talk about it. The money would obviously still need to be right for Canelo to agree to it because he will want a lot more than what he’s been getting for a long time.
“I’ve said before; all His Excellency wants to do is make the biggest fights in the sport, and probably like a lot of fans, gets frustrated that they can’t happen,” said Hearn. “He wanted to make Crawford against Canelo, and he wanted to make Benavidez against Canelo.
“It’s not possible at the moment. So we restrategized, refocused and we look at what fights can be made. I think it was a little bit of frustration for His Excellency. ‘Why can’t we talk about it? Come on.’ The way he does business, ‘Let’s make it happen.’
“The best way to describe His Excellency is he’s a fight fan with a big budget,” said Hearn.
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