Depending on who you ask, Canelo Alvarez’s standing among the all-time greats is all over the place. Terence Crawford is one of his proponents.

Crawford, who will face Alvarez on Sept. 13 in Las Vegas, was recently given a long list of current and all-time great fighters before being asked to rank them in comparison to Mexico's undisputed super middleweight champion.

Crawford placed Carl Froch, Chris Eubank Jr, Felix Trinidad, Manny Pacquiao, Artur Beterbiev and Bernard Hopkins below Alvarez, but when Oscar De La Hoya's name was brought into the mix, he spoke up.

“He was better than Canelo,” Crawford told The Ring.

Was Crawford serious? Or simply trying to get under his opponent's skin? After all, Alvarez and his former promoter De La Hoya have been publicly feuding for years.

Alvarez has claimed the 52-year-old stole from him during their near-decade-long partnership, while saying the Golden Boy chief was disingenuous. The Hall of Famer has hit back, insisting the four-weight world champion is a liar and claims he's declined as a fighter.

What better way to irk Avarez than to declare that his nemesis was a better fighter?

Of course, Alvarez will have the opportunity to show Crawford exactly how good he is when they meet at Allegiant Stadium. Crawford, the WBA junior middleweight titleholder, is moving up two weight classes for what could be his toughest challenge.

A prime De La Hoya might've been better than Alvarez. The more important question is whether a prime Crawford is superior to this version of the future Hall of Famer.

Crawford knows the stakes are higher than in any of his previous fights.

In fact, he recently said that if he were able to dethrone Alvarez and become a three-division undisputed champion, he should be viewed as a top-five fighter of all time.

Crawford's top five at the moment? Sugar Ray Robinson, Sugar Ray Leonard, Floyd Mayweather Jr., Marvin Hagler and Roberto Duran.

That would be some company.