Terence Crawford risks perfect record in quest for Canelo's throne

Terence Crawford’s unflinching dream of fighting Canelo Alavara has turned into a reality with a simple meeting room.

On the road to a superfight, everything may not always go as planned, but in the case of Terence Crawford, it all started with a single and bold request. 

With a hard-fought 154-pound win under his belt and about to enter his 37th year, the undefeated welterweight champion sat down with the influential boxing financier of Saudi Arabia, Turki Alalshikh and made his case. 

He had no interest in the logical follow-ups but he wanted to jump two weight divisions to get to the most formidable opponent in the sport, undisputed super middleweight champion Canelo Alvarez.

Alalashikh, the head of the General Entertainment Authority in Saudi Arabia, was instantly suspicious.

He indicated the radical difference in weight and instead offered very profitable, but more realistic, fights with undefeated opponents such as Vergil Ortiz Jr. and Jaron "Boots" Ennis. But Crawford would not be swayed.

Sources familiar with the conversation reported that Crawford kept on insisting, “This is the tail end of my career.”

Aiming for a bigger goal, Crawford stated, “They’re going to say, you were supposed to win, I want Canelo Alvarez.”

That tenacity, which began thirteen months ago, is now to be rewarded by the most anticipated boxing match of the year. 

On Saturday, September 13, Crawford (41-0, 31 KOs) will take on Alvarez (63-2-2, 39 KOs) to become the undisputed super middleweight champion at Allegiant Stadium in Las Vegas.

The battle was secured when Alalshikh offered Alvarez a historic guaranteed purse, reportedly exceeding $100 million. This offer was too large to refuse.

In the past 10 fights, Canelo has fought better opponents than Crawford. But it is anticipated that the competition will be more challenging than expected.

To a generation of fighters, the match with Canelo has been a career payday.

However, in the case of Crawford, it is an existential search for legacy and respect, an opportunity to rectify all the perceived wrongs of his career.

He has studied Alvarez for years, attending his fights since 2015 and devising a strategy.

Despite being ambitious, Crawford acknowledges the challenges including, Canelo’s size, his recognition as the sport’s “A side” and pro-Canelo crowd as fight launches on Mexican Independence Day weekend.