Terence Crawford is being given the fast track treatment at 154, putting him in a position to challenge the undisputed champion in two fights. It’s easier said than done.
Crawford will turn 38 next year, and he likely won’t get a chance to fight for the final belt until the second half of 2025. That’s if Crawford chooses to stay with his one-fight-a-year schedule. If he stays with his yearly schedule, he won’t fight for the undisputed until 2026.
That wouldn’t be a good idea, but Crawford has been a part-timer since 2020. He’d gotten away with it because he fought less-than-stellar opposition at 147. He never beat anyone special in the five years he fought at 147 from 2018 to 2023.
When Crawford finally fought someone with talent against Madrimov at 154, you could see the effects of age and inactivity. He’s gotten away with being a part-time fighter until now, and he can’t continue to do that if he wants to become undisputed at 154.
For Crawford to become undisputed at 154, he must win these fights:
- Sebastian Fundora: WBC and WBO
- Tim Tszyu vs. Bakhram Murtazaliev winner: IBF
Assuming Crawford defeats Fundora (21-1-1, 13 KOs) next, he’ll likely face Tszyu for the undisputed championship in the second half of 2025. That’s going to be a hard fight for Crawford because Tszyu is young and has power similar to that of Israil Madrimov.
Think of Tszyu as a busier, more aggressive version of Madrimov, who will be looking to take Crawford apart. We saw how Terence barely beat Madrimov and was punished throughout. After the fight, Crawford’s face was lumped up, and he still looked swollen and bruised last month.
“Crawford is going to be able to fast-track to another unification matchup. So, if he’s got one belt now, he fights Fundora, and he has two belts. Then he’s got three out of four. Assuming Tim Tszyu wins his next fight, then you got a Bud-Tszyu matchup for all unification,” said Chris Algieri to Probox TV, discussing the possibility of Terence Crawford positioning himself rapidly to fight for the undisputed championship at 154.
If Crawford had to win one title at a time to become undisputed the hard way, he wouldn’t be able to do it. It would take too long, and he’d have to fight some young killers like Vergil Ortiz. And Serhii Bohachuk. Who knows? Bud might not make it through those guys.
Crawford could be stuck fighting Madrimov again, and you can bet that he would have made changes in his game to improve in the rematch. The only thing that kept Madrimov from winning last August was him not throwing enough punches in rounds 10 through 12.
Madrimov was landing the much harder and cleaner shots against Crawford. If his name was Canelo Alvarez instead of Madrimov, the judges likely would have given him the win because he fought well enough to deserve the victory. It’s tough being the B-side going up against a popular A-side fighter who came into the fight as the favorite.
“That’s a third unification and four for Crawford in his career. If you can do that in two fights, that’s a fast track, and Bud deserves it. So, that’s something that would get him motivated to get back into training camp to do what he needs to do. If he had to go around and collect all these belts from a bunch of young, hungry fighters, that’s a different story,” said Algieri.
If Crawford can’t get motivated to return to training camp with the money he’s getting, that’s a sad statement. Where’s the ambition? It sounds like Crawford has been rich for too long and doesn’t know what it’s like to be hungry like the normal working class.
“But with the way this is panning out where you got Fundora, which is no easy task, even for Bud. Then you’ve got a Tszyu mega-fight. That’s a hell of a proposition,” said Algieri.
“If you get Crawford and Tszyu for the undisputed 154-lb title where you’re creating legacy or you’re creating a new superstar,” said Paulie Malignaggi. “I think Tszyu has a lot of superstar potential. If he’s the one to knock off Crawford for the undisputed title, you’ve possibly created a star for the next generation.”
If Tszyu defeats Crawford, he’s not going to become a superstar because fans will downplay his victory by noting how old Bud is. He looked very old against Madrimov, and he’ll be a year older by the time he faces Tszyu. Do you think Crawford will stop aging? Think again. Crawford is not Benjamin Button like in the movie, and he could be in bad shape by next year after a grueling fight against Fundora.
By September 2025, he may be a 50-year-old, and he’s not going to beat Tszyu in that physical state. The only reason Tszyu lost his last fight in March against 6’6″ Fundora is because he was cut and dealing with a freakishly tall fighter.
Brian Mendoza knocked out Fundora, but he was taking a beating through six rounds before scoring the KO in the seventh. Mendoza is a bigger puncher than Crawford, younger and a lot bigger.
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