Dsalita Terence Crawford and Chris Eubank Jr may meet next in a middleweight bout, which would see briefly-undisputed welterweight champ and three-division titleholder Crawford moving up another two weight divisions.
Crawford (40-0, 31 KO) last fought in July 2023, destroying Errol Spence Jr in a long-awaited undisputed clash at 147 lbs. A rematch was expected, and Spence did reportedly exercise the clause, but then the window to actually get the fight done passed and Spence had a cataract surgery instead.
That meant Crawford was free to explore his options, and recently parted ways with Premier Boxing Champions. It’s no secret that what he seemed to want more than anything else was a fight with undisputed super middleweight champion Canelo Alvarez, but Canelo has shown no interest in facing Crawford, and instead will reportedly face Jaime Munguia on May 4.
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But that doesn’t mean Crawford, 36, can’t still angle for Canelo in the near future, and that may be what’s on his mind with a move to 160 to face Eubank (33-3, 24 KO). In short, if Crawford can go to middleweight and beat Eubank, and look good doing so, Canelo may then see him as a viable in-ring option at 168, and it could also make more fans see Crawford as a credible opponent for Alvarez, which makes it even more financially viable.
Crawford clearly has as little interest in facing Jaron “Boots” Ennis or any of the other welterweights as Canelo does in facing him, and he’s already been stripped of the IBF belt, which went to Ennis, who is expected to defend against Cody Crowley.
Eubank, 34, is a solid draw in the United Kingdom, where he split a pair of fights last year with Liam Smith. In the first one, it’s arguable he was hurt more by an errant elbow than any punch, and wound up stopped in the fourth round. In the rematch, Smith looked to have a clear injury that limited his mobility, and Eubank dominated en route to 10th round revenge.
But the second-generation fighter has never truly made his own mark as a pro, though he’s been successful with the ol’ bank account for sure. He’s never won a world title, unless you’re being extremely generous and counting the “IBO” belt he beat James DeGale for in 2019, and it has always seemed like every time he takes steps forward, he either takes steps back or pumps his own brakes by changing trainers or promoters.
He is, however, a credible middleweight contender in what is a diluted division over the last couple of years. And if Crawford isn’t going to work with PBC, who have the majority of the names at both 147 and 154, then a fight with Eubank may well be as big a money bout as he’s going to find at the moment, on top of the angling for Canelo.
This isn’t official, but there’s plenty of talk, including Eubank seemingly confirming the rumors on social media this morning.
If it goes down, what do you think of the fight?
