Boxing analyst Tim Bradley feels Terence Crawford needs to fight Jaron ‘Boots’ Ennis to show the fans that he’s not afraid of the young phenom.
Bradley Challenges Crawford to Face Ennis
Fans believe the 36-year-old Crawford fled the 147 about division to avoid his IBF mandatory ‘Boots’ Ennis (31-0, 28 KOs), who many view as a younger, stronger, and better version of the Nebraska native.
Crawford chose not to fight Boots Ennis, moving up to 154. He will fight Israil Madrimov next for his WBA junior middleweight title on August 3rd in Los Angeles.
Assuming Crawford is victorious against Madrimov, he’s expected to be given a free title shot against undisputed super middleweight champion Canelo Alvarez.
With the money the Saudis will pay Crawford to fight Canelo, he won’t mess with Boots Ennis and possibly get beaten.
When a fighter is as old as Crawford, turning 37 in October, it’s too risky to fight a young phenom like Boots Ennis, especially when a big payday looms against Canelo in early 2025.
A Business Decision, Not a Sporting One
In a perfect world, Crawford would fight Boots Ennis, prove who the better fighter is, and then move up to 168 and beat the top contender in that weight class, David Benavidez, before challenging Canelo for his four world titles.
That’s not happening because Canelo vs. Crawford is a business-level fight, not a sporting match. Fans shouldn’t get things twisted into believing it’s a sporting match. It’s not.
Bradley wants Crawford to fight Boots, either at 147 or 154. Ennis is willing to move up to 154 to fight Crawford, and he believes he can beat the old lion, who has never fought anyone nearly as good as him during his 16-year career.
Ennis as the “Next Crawford”
“You got Boots. That’s a good fight. I think it’s a winnable fight. It takes care of a lot of the banter of, ‘You haven’t faced anybody,’ that Crawford faces on a day-to-day basis,” said boxing expert Tim Bradley to Sean Zittel’s YouTube channel about what Terence Crawford would gain by fighting Jaron ‘Boots’ Ennis.
Crawford vs. Ennis is winnable for either fighter. Terence has been out of the ring a year, celebrating his victory over Errol Spence Jr. last year in July, and he’s a little older now. Boots is younger and stronger than Crawford. A fight against him would involve Crawford taking more punishment than ever, and he might not be up to it.
“Fight Boots, the guy that’s up and coming. The guy that everybody believes is the next coming of you, Crawford. You beat him, and you add more to your legacy. I think Crawford should eventually if he’s going to stay in the game any longer, he needs to visit that Boots,” said Bradley.
Even if Crawford had not been offered the Canelo fight, he probably would have done the same thing by swerving Boots and going up to 154, which is safer for an aging fighter. When you get old, you don’t want to mess with a young lion like Boots, and have him wreck your PPV situation, especially when just reached that level, thanks to Spence’s help.
“Boots hasn’t had the opportunity to show his greatness because no one has given him that opportunity. That’s not his fault, and nobody wants to fight him because they know he’s that good, including Crawford,” said Bradley.
Crawford is no different than all the other fighters who wanted no part in fighting Boots Ennis. He knows how dangerous he is, so he’s moved up to 154, hoping to use Madrimov as a stepping stone. That might not work out either, but he might not have had a choice in that fight. Either fight Madrimov or no Canelo.
Crawford’s Reluctance: Money or Fear?
“Boots is calling you. Boots is saying, ‘I want that a** whooping. Please give it to me. Let’s make it happen.’ Crawford has yet to do anything about it. He’s like, ‘Ah, nonchalant. I got bigger fish to fry.’ I get it because Crawford is at the end of his career, but that would be a damn good fight,” said Bradley.
It looks weak on Crawford’s part that he’s not accepting the challenge from Boots because it gives fans a clear sign that he’s
- Afraid of Boots
- Just looking for that Canelo gold
- Overrated from the jump
“That would make more sense than the Canelo fight. They feel, he’s [Crawford] chasing money. They feel, ‘Ah, he’s just chasing money. He can’t [win,’” said Bradley.
Crawford’s decision to take the Boots fight makes a lot more sense than moving up two weight classes from 154 to 168 to challenge Canelo Alvarez for his titles without ever having fought in that weight class. That just looks like Crawford is moving up for the money, and he doesn’t think he can win.
Crawford’s “Worry”
“I’m not saying Boots can beat Crawford. What I’m saying is there’s some worry there. There’s definitely some worry on the Crawford side if they don’t want to face Boots. Everybody should be screaming, ‘Crawford, you’ve got business to handle,’” said Bradley.
Crawford is clearly worried about the threat that Boots poses to him because if there weren’t, he wouldn’t have taken off like a rocket once he captured the IBF 147-lb title from Spence and inherited the mandatory obligations to fight Ennis.
“I know Boots is at 147 pounds, but I’m sure Boots will go up to 154 to face Crawford. The money is there. Don’t nobody know this Madrimov guy. He just became world champion, but there are probably more people who know who Boots is,” said Bradley.
Boots Ennis is much better known in the U.S. than Israil Madrimov, but Crawford isn’t arguing that he’s not. He’s taking the fight because it’s one that His Excellency wants. It would get really interesting if Turki told Crawford to fight Boots Ennis to earn the Canelo fight; then you’d see how badly Crawford wants that Canelo payday.
“So, the money can definitely be there, and this is a guy that’s calling your name and saying, ‘Hey, I can whoop your a** and I know it. What are you going to do about it? Nothing?” said Bradley.
A fight between Boots Ennis and Crawford would be far bigger than Crawford-Madrimov in terms of PPV, but it’s one that Terence would have a greater chance of losing. Again, given that he’s got the Canelo fight in front of him, Crawford isn;t about to risk that payday by taking on Boots Ennis and getting exposed.
“He’s in a similar situation as Crawford. Nobody wanted to fight him,” said Bradley.
Nobody wants to fight Boots Ennis, and that’s still not changed, even though he’s with Matchroom now. It’s going to take a long time before the popular fighters want to face him. That could change if Boots defeats Crawford and adds his hide to his collection.
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