Who was the major boxing figure who advised Terence Crawford to chase Canelo Alvarez fight?

Terence Crawford has revealed who first put the idea in his head that he should chase a fight with boxing superstar Canelo Alvarez.

Crawford sealed the biggest win of his career last month when he outpointed Canelo to become the undisputed super-middleweight champion.

Just two years ago, Crawford and Canelo were fighting three divisions apart and did not appear to be on a collision course. But Crawford has explained how Bill Haney, father of two-weight world champion Devin Haney, convinced him he could beat Canelo before he faced Errol Spence at welterweight in July 2023.

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Recalling his conversation with Bill Haney, Crawford said on The Art of Ward with Andre Ward: “He [Haney] said: ‘Stop even chasing Errol Spence. The guy to focus in on and chase is Canelo.’ He was like: ‘You can beat him.’

“At first, I’m like: ‘Man, that dude is big!’ And then I started looking at him, then we got a picture together years back when I was at 135[lb]. I’m like: ‘We’re around the same height, the same size, he’s a little thicker.’ I’m starting to look into it now because he already planted the seed, but now I’m looking into it like: ‘Let me see what Bill’s seen.’

“He just kept saying: ‘He’s not a big dude and you can beat him.’ And when I looked into it, I’m like: ‘Damn, Bill [is] right.’”

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open image in gallery

The Canelo fight still seemed to be a pipe dream even after Crawford dispatched Spence inside nine rounds in their undisputed clash. Crawford was adamant that he warranted a shot at Canelo, though, and explained why beating Spence enhanced his chances of getting the super-fight.

“Spence was basically contracted to fight Canelo if he beat me at 164,” Crawford added. “And I was just like: ‘Damn, since I beat him, I should get the opportunity.’”

Crawford had to bide his time as he first went up to 154lb to win a title in a fourth weight class by beating Israil Madrimov last year.

But he finally got his chance against Canelo on Mexican Independence Day weekend and delivered a masterclass to win a unanimous decision and cement himself as the best pound-for-pound fighter on the planet.

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