Top trainer Kevin Cunningham says the ease with which Terence “Bud” Crawford dismantled Errol Spence shows just how “special” he is, and that the welterweight champion would have a good chance of beating either Canelo Alvarez or Jermell Charlo, who meet in a super-middleweight clash on Showtime PPV on September 30.
“I wasn't surprised that Bud won the fight,” Cunningham told the Showtime Boxing Podcast. “But I was surprised at how easily and how he dominated Errol. I mean, I looked at it as a 50-50 fight. But I knew Bud was special. And I think that if he fights the winner of Canelo and Charlo, he's got an excellent chance to beat either one of those guys. He's that special of a fighter. So, you know, that's how I feel about Terence Crawford.”
Although Crawford reigns supreme in a division fully 21 pounds lighter than the weight at which Canelo and Charlo will lock horns at the T-Mobile Arena, Cunningham – whose fighter Erickson Lubin will face off against Jesus Ramos in the card’s co-main event – believes the effect of size differences is overstated when the smaller boxer is of Crawford’s quality.
“I don't just think a smaller fighter can beat a bigger fighter,” he explained. “I think a special fighter with a special skill set and the proper boxing IQ [neutralizes] the size advantage or weight advantage. If you're special, if you're a specially gifted fighter, size really doesn't matter. When you're especially gifted, the way Terence Crawford is, the way Floyd Mayweather was, the way Pernell Whitaker was. So, I mean, size doesn't play a major role when you're dealing with guys that are especially gifted like that. And Terence Crawford is special like that.”
