LOS ANGELES – Terence Crawford is making it clear by calling his shot now.
If he beats Canelo Alvarez in a Riyadh Season showdown slated for September to become the undisputed champion at 168 pounds, he’s ready and willing to step back down to 154 pounds for a chance to become an undisputed champion in a fourth weight class.
Crawford (41-0, 31 KOs) was an undisputed champion at 140 and 147 pounds and also held a title at 135 pounds. He is the current WBA 154-pound titleholder.
The other champions in the junior middleweight division feature Sebastian Fundora (WBC, WBO) and Bakhram Murtazaliev (IBF). The Ring title is currently vacant.
Crawford doesn’t deem matchups against the likes of Fundora, Murtazaliev, and the WBC interim title holder Vergil Ortiz Jr. as legacy-defining fights, but he’ll entertain the idea if one of them suddenly emerges with the rest of the belts.
“It's a lot of great fighters out there [at 154 pounds],” Crawford told The Ring during an extensive and exclusive interview. “I don't want to disrespect any of the fighters just by saying one or the other is the best in the division. If they ever fought, the winner would be the best because styles make fights. Who knows? Maybe it will be a possible showdown for Terence Crawford and the winner.”
That means Fundora, Murtazaliev, and Ortiz should get busy by facing each other to begin the process of elimination in order to get Crawford’s attention.
“If the opportunity presents itself, and it's a great opportunity for me and my career, then we will do what we have to do to make that fight with the winner,” said Crawford. “But who knows [where I will go after Canelo]. Maybe we do a rematch or I'll fight someone else. Right now I'm just mentally focused on Canelo. Getting my mind and my body right. And just mentally preparing myself for everything that I have to do to get the victory.
“To become a four-weight undisputed champion is crazy. We have to weigh it out and just see what happens after this fight [against Alvarez]. None of the other fights do anything for my career. If I beat Fundora, Ortiz, or Murtazaliev, I'm supposed to beat those guys. But me fighting Canelo? I'm not supposed to beat Canelo in a lot of people's eyes. That's a career-defining fight, that's a legacy fight, and the biggest fight in boxing at this time.”
On Friday, WBO president Gustavo Olivieri said he has confirmed Crawford will not return to the 154 pounds and would relinquish his interim WBO title upon the official announcement of the Alvarez fight, and “therefore, his mandatory challenger status is moot.”
Manouk Akopyan is a lead writer for The Ring. He can be reached on X and Instagram @ManoukAkopyan.