Sports
‘That’s the only fight I want’: How Terence Crawford landed Canelo Alvarez
LAS VEGAS — Shortly after moving up in weight and eking out a win in the closest fight of his career, Terence Crawford — then on the cusp of his 37th birthday — was insisting on jumping another two divisions to fight the undisputed 168-pound champion, Canelo Alvarez. This was 13 months ago. Crawford was addressing an audience of one: his patron, the Saudi Arabian boxing financier, Turki Alalshikh.
Even by boxing standards — I use the term advisedly, as boxing has only few and dubious standards — it seemed a semi-preposterous idea. Alalshikh shot him a look. “But the weight?” he said.
Actually, it was more than just the weight. Both history and common sense favor not merely the naturally bigger man, but the younger one, and the so-called “A side.” Paired with Canelo — boxing’s leading man, who had already generated almost half a billion dollars in purses — Crawford was none of those things. What’s more, he would do it without insisting on any of the usual contractual niceties designed to even the odds: no catchweight, no rehydration clause.
Alalshikh proposed a couple of very lucrative, if more sensible, alternatives: Vergil Ortiz Jr. or Jaron “Boots” Ennis, each of them undefeated young stars with great ambition at 154 pounds. Crawford refused to entertain either option. “Boots is not a megafight,” he said. “Vergil Ortiz is not a megafight. This is the tail end of my career. They’re going to say, ‘You were supposed to win.’ I want Canelo Alvarez.”
He wanted the fight he wasn’t supposed to win.
“OK,” said Alalshikh, relenting. “I’m going to try to get that fight for you.”
“That’s the only fight I want,” said Crawford.
Thirteen months hence, Canelo and Crawford will fight Saturday at Allegiant Stadium. Canelo agreed to the fight in return for a purse believed to be in excess of $100 million (“More than that,” Alalshikh proclaimed at Thursday’s news conference) — an offer that even the sport’s leading man couldn’t refuse. But it all began with Crawford. “That’s how we got here,” he says.
A generation of fighters has come to look upon Canelo less as a rival than as a score, a jackpot, a career payday. Their victories, it seems, were signing the contracts, not fighting the fights. But Crawford looks to Canelo as his white whale, something he was stalking long before that meeting with Alalshikh: an existential corrective for everything he believes has afflicted his career, an answer for every slight going back to the amateurs, from fighters who wouldn’t fight him to promoters who failed to promote him, a source of eternal respect and stature. But only if he wins.
In fact, Crawford has been studying Canelo since at least 2015, when he showed up at Mandalay Bay to watch Alvarez beat a future Hall of Famer, Miguel Cotto, for his first middleweight title. Crawford, by comparison, then held the WBO junior welterweight title. “I didn’t think fighting Canelo would be a thing,” he says. “We were too far apart in weight classes.”
Gradually, though, it would become a thing. In 2021, Crawford — by then a welterweight champion, though desperately lacking for worthy opponents — attended Alvarez’s stay-busy fight against somebody named Avni Yildirim in Miami. Canelo, now the WBC’s 168-pound champion, knocked out Yildirim in the third round. But even as he did, the seed had been planted. Crawford wouldn’t mention it in public, but it was in the back of his mind.
By 2023, though, he had begun his behind-the-scenes campaign to land a Canelo fight. Late that year, he met with then-WBO president Francisco “Paco” Valcarcel in Puerto Rico and broached the idea.
“I was shocked,” recalls Valcarcel. While Crawford had now beaten Errol Spence Jr. to become undisputed at 147 pounds, Canelo — who had already won a world title by knockout at 175 — was undisputed at 168. “Why don’t you wait a couple years?” Valcarcel advised gently.
“I can’t wait,” Crawford shot back, citing his age. “I can beat him.”
By now, Crawford was a regular at Canelo’s biannual fights, and still fresh in his mind was Canelo’s victory over Jermell Charlo. Charlo, coming up from 154 pounds, was dropped in Round 7. After that, though, it was all paint-by-numbers. “He didn’t fight to win,” Crawford says of Charlo. “He just fought to survive.”
In many respects, Canelo-Charlo has become an all-too-familiar template in the arc of Alvarez’s career: a single knockdown that lumbers on predictably to a unanimous decision. Such was the case in Canelo’s wins over the likes of John Ryder, Jaime Munguia and Edgar Berlanga.
“They wanted the payday,” Crawford tells me. “They didn’t want to win the fight. Going the 12 rounds was a victory to them.”
If Canelo’s most recent victory — for which Crawford traveled all the way to Riyadh, Saudi Arabia — lacked even the pro forma knockdown, his opponent, William Scull, was intent on nothing so much as survival. Crawford, meanwhile, fights only to destroy.
That said, if it’s fair to judge Canelo based on past performances, what of Crawford’s? His last fight, moving up to 154 and winning a close if unanimous decision over the estimable Israil Madrimov, fell far short of making a case for Canelo.
“Madrimov taught me patience,” says Crawford. “He was so herky-jerky and so explosive — bouncing back and forth, all those crazy antics. But Canelo doesn’t have any of that in his arsenal. I don’t have to worry about any of that with him.”
What about the age, though? Alvarez is 35. Crawford is two weeks from his 38th birthday, old by the standards of any division in any era, and certainly not an optimal time to jump up multiple divisions. Then again, Alvarez has fought at least 520 rounds (maybe more, as there are believed to be several early fights of his that never made it into the records) as a pro. He has had two competitive fights with the hard-hitting Gennadiy Golovkin, and losses to Floyd Mayweather and, more recently, Dmitry Bivol. Crawford, for his part, has never been beaten, or beaten down, in 245 pro rounds. Who’s older in boxing years? I wonder.
“He is for sure,” says Crawford. “He started fighting professional at 15.”
Still, Alvarez remains not merely the “A side,” but an economy unto himself. Considering the fight is on Mexican Independence Day weekend, it will certainly be a pro-Canelo crowd, but more than that, Canelo will be the presumptive beneficiary of any doubt on the judges’ scorecards. Crawford doesn’t disagree. He knows he can’t fight his typical fight, which involves a relatively slow start as he downloads his opponent’s tendencies. He needs to start fast.
“Of course, of course,” he says. “I got to set the tone. You have to set the tone with Canelo — to let the judges know you’re putting rounds in the bank. That’s how I look at it: one round at a time. Don’t go in and try to get a knockout in the first round. Just put rounds in the bank. And make sure you’re winning those rounds decisively.”
The way Crawford explains it — the way he has been explaining it to himself for years now — makes his existential errand sound, well, perfectly reasonable. Maybe that’s how you hunt white whales, even those with red hair, when the only thing you want is what you’re not supposed to have.
Cricket’s T20 World Cup begins Saturday after an acrimonious build‑up overshadowed by political turmoil, with Bangladesh kicked out and Pakistan refusing to face arch-rivals and co-hosts India.
When the first ball is finally bowled after a chaotic lead-in, Pakistan will open the tournament against the Netherlands in Colombo.
Defending champions and tournament favourites India will make their tournament bow in the night match on day one against the United States in Mumbai, carrying the hopes of a billion-plus home cricket supporters.
Led by Suryakumar Yadav, India will start as firm tournament favourites and are expected to ease into the Super Eight stage from Group A.
But they will be wary of the United States, who are looking to take down another cricketing powerhouse, having shocked Pakistan to make the Super Eights in 2024.
Former champions Australia and England are also strong contenders to lift the trophy and deny holders India the title for a record second straight time.
The 2021 winners Australia have been hit hard by the absence of pace spearhead Pat Cummins, who was ruled out with a lower back injury.
Pace bowler Josh Hazlewood will miss the early stages as he recovers from hamstring and Achilles injuries.
Led by Mitchell Marsh, the Australians should still ease into the next round from Group B against Ireland, who they play first on Wednesday, plus co-hosts Sri Lanka Oman and Zimbabwe.
Harry Brook’s England, full of confidence after a 3-0 T20 series win in Sri Lanka this week, are expected to make the Super Eights from a Group C that also features two-time winners West Indies, debutants Italy, Nepal and Scotland.
Brook, under intense scrutiny after having to apologise for an incident with a night club bouncer in New Zealand last year, takes charge at a global tournament for the first time since he replaced Jos Buttler as white ball captain.
England, who start with a match against Nepal on Sunday in Mumbai, won the tournament in 2010 and 2022.
Scotland, after their 11th-hour call-up to replace Bangladesh, will take guard on the opening day when they face the West Indies in Kolkata.
Football powerhouse Italy will make an appearance at a cricket World Cup for the first time, and will kick off against the Scots in Kolkata on Monday.
South Africa, the runners-up in 2024, have never won a white ball World Cup, but are buoyed by winning the World Test Championship last year.
They will be a threat but must first emerge from a tough-looking Group D that contains dangerous opponents in New Zealand and Afghanistan.
They begin against Canada on Monday in Ahmedabad, with the UAE the other team in that group.
The top two teams from each of the four groups of five teams will advance to the Super Eights, with the top four making the semi-finals.
Politics, pullouts
There will be relief at the weekend when the action gets under way finally after weeks of political posturing that has dominated the build-up to 10th edition of the showpiece tournament.
Bangladesh refused to play in India, citing security concerns, as relations between the two countries soured and were kicked out by the International Cricket Council (ICC) from England’s Group C.
The ICC is led by Jay Shah, the former Indian cricket board secretary and son of the powerful Indian home minister Amit Shah.
Pakistan, who had backed Bangladesh’s plea to have their games moved to Sri Lanka, were cleared to play by the Islamabad government but they ordered the team not to play the marquee group clash against fierce rivals India on February 15.
According to media reports, the ICC is still waiting formal communication from the Pakistan Cricket Board on the boycott, leaving the door slightly ajar for a last-minute deal to get the game on.
If India are awarded a walkover, Pakistan will lose two points and take a big hit to their net run rate.
If any of their other three Group A games are lost to the weather then it could make it almost impossible for Pakistan to qualify.
Pakistan’s pullout will result in a loss of millions of dollars in revenue for broadcasters, and will be a huge letdown for fans on both sides.
The crisis was triggered last month when India’s cricket board ordered the IPL’s Kolkata Knight Riders to drop Bangladesh fast bowler Mustafizur Rahman, a move that deepened political strains between the neighbours.
The tournament will conclude with the final on March 8 in Ahmedabad or Colombo, depending on whether Pakistan go that far.
Manchester City’s Omar Marmoush (L) celebrates scoring against Newcastle. Photo: AFP
MANCHESTER:
Manchester City will face Arsenal in the League Cup final after ending Newcastle’s reign as holders with a first-half blitz in their 3-1 victory on Wednesday.
Pep Guardiola’s side were already in pole position after winning the semi-final first leg on Tyneside in January and they finished the job in ruthless fashion at the Etihad Stadium.
Omar Marmoush struck twice in the first half of the second leg before Tijjani Reijnders put the result beyond doubt.
Anthony Elanga reduced the deficit after the interval, but City’s 5-1 aggregate win sent them back to the League Cup showpiece for the first time since 2021.
City’s final date with Arsenal is set for March 22 at Wembley after the Premier League leaders knocked out Chelsea on Tuesday.
Reaching the final was a welcome tonic for Guardiola following the frustration of blowing a two-goal lead in a 2-2 draw at Tottenham on Sunday that delivered a major blow to their title challenge.
With a crucial trip to Liverpool looming this weekend, City trail Arsenal by six points in the Premier League title race.
The League Cup was the first silverware of Guardiola’s City reign when they beat Arsenal in the 2018 final, with current Gunners boss Mikel Arteta then working as the Spaniard’s assistant.
City went on to win the competition for the following three years, but haven’t lifted the League Cup since 2021.
“We will travel to London again, they will wait for us there. They never travel to the north (for finals) but I am really happy to be back. Five (League Cup) finals in 10 years is a big milestone,” Guardiola said.
“It will be good. You have to live this experience. The first title we won here was in the League Cup.
“When you win something, it helps to win more. It’s a pleasure to play against Arsenal, the best team right now in Europe and maybe the world.”
Newcastle boss Eddie Howe added: “Really annoyed with the first half display. We pride ourselves on being really organised and tactically we want to be able to handle any problem the opposition gives us.
“That first half we weren’t good enough individually and our duels were off and it gave us huge problems.”
Guardiola used sarcasm and statistics this week to defend City against claims the club’s success has been due to the financial muscle of their Abu Dhabi-based owners.
The City manager pointed out six English clubs have spent more than his side over the past five years, but he knows he will never win over the critics.
Slick City
Guardiola’s only way to silence the outside noise — and mounting suggestions that City are a team in decline — is with silverware.
And after finishing last season without a trophy for the first time in eight years, Guardiola would love to end City’s barren spell at Arsenal’s expense.
Marmoush put City ahead with a stroke of luck in the seventh minute.
He raced into the Newcastle penalty area and when Dan Burn made a last-ditch tackle, the ball bounced off the Egypt forward and looped into the net.
James Trafford preserved City’s lead, saving from Joe Willock and Anthony Gordon in quick succession.
Marmoush struck for the second time in the 29th minute, heading home from virtually on the goal-line after Kieran Trippier made a hash of clearing Antoine Semenyo’s cross.
That was the culmination of an incisive City counter-attack and they pulled Newcastle apart again with another rapid raid in the 32nd minute.
Reijnders led the break, picking out Semenyo and racing into the area to finish the Ghanaian’s return pass with a clinical low drive from 12 yards.
City barely got out of first gear in the second half and Elanga got one back in the 62nd minute, curling into the far corner after slaloming through the defence.
Penn State forward Gavin McKenna, the consensus first overall pick in this June’s NHL draft, has been charged with felony aggravated assault and other counts, according to Pennsylvania Magisterial District Court documents.
McKenna, an 18-year-old native of Canada, was charged with first-degree felony aggravated assault, which is defined as “attempts to cause serious bodily injury or causes injury with extreme indifference”; misdemeanor simple assault; and two summary counts of disorderly conduct for harassment and engaging in a fight.
The maximum penalty for first-degree felony aggravated assault in Pennsylvania is 20 years in prison and/or a $25,000 fine.
According to the State College Police Department, McKenna’s charges are the result of an altercation that occurred in State College at about 8:45 p.m. on Jan. 31. Police said McKenna allegedly struck a 21-year-old male in the face, resulting in facial injuries that required surgery.
McKenna was arraigned on the charges and released on $20,000 bail. A preliminary hearing for the case is scheduled for Feb. 11 at the Centre County Courthouse in Bellefonte, Pennsylvania.
The alleged incidents happened on the same day that an NCAA outdoor hockey game at Penn State’s Beaver Stadium drew 74,575 fans. The Nittany Lions lost to Michigan State 5-4 in overtime. McKenna had a goal and two assists. He has 32 points (11 goals, 21 assists) in 24 games with Penn State this season.
NHL Central Scouting ranks McKenna first among all North American skaters. The NHL told ESPN it is aware of the charges against McKenna but offered no comment, as he’s not currently a player in the league.
Penn State issued a statement saying it was aware of the charges.
“We are aware that charges have been filed; however, as this is an ongoing legal matter, we will not have any further comment,” the statement said.
McKenna stunned the hockey world last year by opting to leave Canadian junior hockey for Penn State’s men’s hockey program. In 2024, the NCAA ruled that Canadian junior players were now eligible to play on Division I teams, ending a decades-old policy that made young athletes choose between the Canadian Hockey League and college hockey.
McKenna was one of the first Canadian junior players to make the jump to the NCAA. His NIL money for attending Penn State is “in the ballpark” of $700,000, a source told ESPN at the time.
Sweden’s H&M delivers stronger FY25 margins on inventory gains
Hyundai i20 becomes Rs 87,000 cheaper: Now starts at Rs 5.99 lakh – Best time to buy?
New Epstein link emerges with Palace amid Prince Harry’s phone hacking case
-
Sports1 week agoPSL 11: Local players’ category renewals unveiled ahead of auction
-
Entertainment1 week agoClaire Danes reveals how she reacted to pregnancy at 44
-
Sports1 week agoCollege football’s top 100 games of the 2025 season
-
Politics1 week agoTrump vows to ‘de-escalate’ after Minneapolis shootings
-
Sports1 week agoTammy Abraham joins Aston Villa 1 day after Besiktas transfer
-
Entertainment1 week agoK-Pop star Rosé to appear in special podcast before Grammy’s
-
Tech1 week agoThe Surface Laptop Is $400 Off
-
Business1 week agoPSX witnesses 6,000-point on Middle East tensions | The Express Tribune