Terence Crawford saw and heard all that he needed, in order to enter the chat.

The former three-division RING champion and reigning WBA 154-pound titlist is finally in reach of a dream fight with Saul ‘Canelo’ Alvarez. Multiple sources have informed The Ring that extraordinary efforts are being made to put the fight together for later this year.

ESPN Deportes' Julius Julianis suggested a deal is already in place. Other sources have suggested it can happen as early as May, though such plans sound extremely ambitious.

Alvarez was in London for the inaugural Ring Awards ceremony and made a point to meet with Turki Alalshikh, the driving force behind Riyadh Season and new owner of The Ring. Alalshikh and his group presented this weekend’s ceremony, while also meeting with boxing royalty including Alvarez (62-2-2, 39 KOs) to discuss big business in 2025.

The moment Crawford (41-0, 31 KOs) heard his name mentioned, he rearranged his weekend plans.

“I’m like a Genie when you rub his lamp,” Crawford said, posting a picture outside London’s Heathrow Airport on Sunday. “Once you call upon me, I appear to grant you one wish because I’m a free Genie, not one in cuffs.”

Alalshikh met with Crawford on Sunday, one day after he had productive talks with Alvarez about general business for the year ahead.

Alvarez is still putting together plans for a targeted May ring return, to defend his Ring, WBC, WBA and WBO super middleweight championship. Crawford, who just moved up to junior middleweight in 2024, would advance another two weight divisions for what he has repeatedly referred to as a legacy fight.

Crawford has not fought since an Aug. 3 unanimous decision win over Israil Madrimov to win the WBA and interim WBO junior middleweight titles. The fight headlined Riyadh Season’s U.S. launch at BMO Stadium in Los Angeles, California.

Alalshikh was always keen to deliver an Alvarez-Crawford fight, but briefly paused those plans once Alvarez didn’t show interest in the fight. He instead moved forward with a championship defense versus Edgar Berlanga, whom he outpointed over twelve rounds last September in Las Vegas.

Neither Alvarez nor Crawford have fought since then. It is unclear—though at this point doubtful—whether Crawford would take a fight before the hoped-for showdown with Alvarez. All signs still point to Alvarez fighting in May as he has already put out feelers for a notable enough opponent to headline a Pay-Per-View event in the U.S.

Those plans can obviously change in a hurry, though. Alvarez’s presence in London this weekend is enough proof.