Terence Crawford has been called out by a fighter who, much like he did against Canelo Alvarez, is determined to climb up several weight divisions and face him.
Having already cemented his legacy, the 38-year-old has seemingly reached a point in his career where the most lucrative opportunities are few and far between.
He did, of course, secure a monstrous payday against Canelo in September, while also becoming a three-division undisputed champion after unanimously outpointing the Mexican super-middleweight.
Now, though, it appears that Crawford may struggle to earn himself an even comparable lump of cash, particularly when considering the lack of notable names in and around his division.
There is, it seems, a potential clash with unified middleweight king Janibek Alimkhanuly that could materialise next year, offering ‘Bud’ the chance to become a six-weight world champion.
But again, the money on offer is unlikely to give Crawford any reason to get out of bed, unless he remains genuinely eager to further enhance his greatness.
In terms of landing a purely money-spinning showdown, then, he may be enticed by Teofimo Lopez, who has expressed interest in a possible fight with ‘Bud’ after his next outing.
The WBO world super-lightweight champion must first defend his title against Shakur Stevenson, the WBC belt-holder at 135lbs, on January 31.
Should he come through his tricky assignment in New York, Lopez may then be considered among the greatest pound-for-pound fighters in this sport.
At which point, Crawford, who is a close friend of Stevenson, may, indeed, begin to entertain the 28-year-old’s call out which he made on the Inside The Ring Show.
“Crawford sent out one of his little guys [Stevenson] to come and finish the job, and I think that’s not going to work.
“I’m still going to be here, and if he’s still going to be in boxing, I would love to face him right after [the Stevenson fight].
“He is the guy; he is the man of boxing. If he can go up three weight divisions to fight Canelo Alvarez, why can’t Teofimo go up two weight classes, or three, to face Terence Crawford?”
