Shakur Stevenson Defends Crawford’s Controversial Win Over Madrimov

Shakur Stevenson came to Terence Crawford’s defense today on social media, defending him from critics after his controversial decision win over WBA junior middleweight champion Israil Madrimov last Saturday night at His Excellency Turki Alalshikh’s event in Los Angeles.

(Credit: Melina Pizano/Matchroom)

WBC lightweight champion Shakur, who is friends with Terence, says the fight “wasn’t close,” and Crawford had easily won. It didn’t look that way to fans, and I didn’t see it that way.

It appeared that a fossilized, past his prime, Crawford lost the fight against the younger, faster, and stronger Madrimov, but the judges gave him a break.

Fans’ Discontent: A Boring Affair

According to Shakur,  Crawford-Madrimov was “one of the best fights” he’d seen. Unfortunately, the general public that pays for fights expects more from PPV events and wants to be entertained for their money.

“Most people don’t know [anything] about boxing. That was one of the best fights I watched in so long. It wasn’t close at all, but you’ve got to have a high IQ to understand that,” said Shakur Stevenson on social media, discussing his thoughts on last Saturday’s clash between TCrawford and WBA Junior middleweight champion Madrimov, which fans have deemed boring.

Shakur doesn’t seem to understand that, and that’s one of the reasons fans view his fight as virtually unwatchable. Boxing has changed since the days of the dinosaurs, and fans now want to be entertained for their money. Fighters like Crawford and Shakur don’t provide value for the fans’ money, and that was the problem we saw last Saturday night with Terence boring the fans.

The Controversy Surrounding the Decision

They felt the 36-year-old Crawford looked old and faded from the get-go. The final straw was Crawford winning a controversial 12-round unanimous decision. Madrimov landed the harder, cleaner shots the entire fight, but the judges still gave it to Crawford based on his weak jabs and some fans’ feelings due to his popularity.

Fans had labeled the low-punch-output, tactical affair between Crawford and Madrimov (10-0-1, 7 KOs) as ‘boring,’ lacking any sense of entertainment value, and completely unworthy of being sold on PPV.