The promo trailer is out for the August 3rd fight between WBA junior middleweight champion Israil Madrimov (10-0-1, 7 KOs) and Terence Crawford (40-0, 31 KOs) on ESPN+ PPV at the BMO Stadium in Los Angeles.
Turki Alalshikh’s Confidence and Mysterious “Surprises”
Crawford’s inactivity puts some doubt about whether he will be up to the task of taking on a puncher with as much talent and raw power as Madrimov. Terence has never ought anyone near this level during his 16-year career, and he’s not a young chicken anymore.
This is Crawford’s fourth weight class, and he feasted on largely older, past their best guys at welterweight. Madrimov could expose Crawford to the light of day on August 3rd, revealing that he’s not the fighter that fans had thought.
Turki Alalshikh’s Confidence and Hints of a “Surprise”
Turki Alalshikh has confidence in the 36-year-old Crawford that he’ll be able to deliver against the younger and stronger Madrimov in his debut at 154 after 13 months out of the ring:
“I’m confident Crawford will deliver a historic performance and surprise the world. We have some major surprises in store for Crawford that will be revealed soon,” said Alalshikh on X.
What I want to know is whether there will be a surprise for Madrimov if he obliterates Crawford. It defeats the whole purpose if the loser gets the rewards in this match-up while the winner is left out in the cold for a job well done.
With the fight being staged in Los Angeles, Crawford will have the home country advantage, but it’s not his hometown. ‘Little GGG’ Madrimov brings his own judges to his fights with his punching power, so Crawford may not get lucky with the judging on August 3rd.
Turki’s comment, “We have some major surprises in store for Crawford,” would seem to hint at his getting the title shot against undisputed super middleweight champion Canelo Alvarez. If that match happens, it would be Crawford’s first fight at 168.
What’s unclear is if Crawford would still get a chance to fight Canelo for his four belt belts, even if he loses to Madrimov on August 3rd. Will Crawford still get the Canelo fight, even if he’s coming off a knockout loss to Madrimov? If so, what’s the point of him taking this fight at all on August 3rd?
A Golden Ticket for Madrimov?
It would be interesting to the fans if Madrimov wins the fight against Crawford and gets the golden ticket to face Canelo. It would be like a vintage Gennadiy Golovkin being pulled out of a deep-freeze cryo chamber and brought back to face Canelo.
What would have been more interesting is if the Crawford-Madrimov fight had been one where the winner would have been promised the Canelo clash, not potentially the loser, Crawford.
The bigger fight for business would be for Crawford to be the one to challenge Canelo rather than Madrimov, but if Terence is coming off a loss, that takes a lot of the appeal away from the match against Alvarez.
Read the full article here
