Andre Ward was widely regarded as one of the best pound-for-pound boxers of his generation during his prime. In fact, he had the tag and mantra on lockdown without much, if any, debate about it. (Yes, running the table at the Super Six World Boxing Classic tournament in 2009 definitely earned Ward some major stripes that he kept building upon).
But after retiring last September, who does the former undefeated, unified super middleweight and lightweight champion recognize as boxing’s pound-for-pound king as of this very moment?
Ask the S.O.G. (“Son of God”) and he’ll rifle you an answer quicker than he could pump his jab — Terence Crawford.
“A lot of people are saying [lightweight boxing sensation Vasyl] Lomachenko. I think Lomo has a lot of ability, but I don’t think you could put him above Terence Crawford,” Ward told Sporting News on Tuesday without hesitation at Foley’s pub across the street from the Empire State Building, where he held a press conference to promote “The Contender” boxing reality series that he's hosting. “There are a handful of guys who are on the way up, but right now, you got to have Terence Crawford No. 1.”
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Why did Ward name Crawford so quickly and confidently? Well, it’s a two-pronged thought process. For starters, just like Ward had with his Bay Area hometown, Crawford’s city of Omaha, Nebraska champions him with unwavering loyalty and fervor. Ward made Oracle Arena in Oakland his house for fights. Well, when it wasn't occupied by budding NBA dynasty, the Golden State Warriors, that is. And Crawford is doing the same with CenturyLink Center in Omaha.
“Terence Crawford has a home base, he could sell 10,000 to 15,000 tickets just like that,” Ward said about the undefeated welterweight. “If your hometown is rocking with you and they’re supporting you and they’re spending money to come see you fight, the whole world has to take notice.”
Solid point. And by the way, that fierce hometown following includes billionaire business mogul Warren Buffett, who Crawford considers a friend.
But more than that hometown love and support, Crawford can seemingly do it all in the ring, whether it’s putting on a sound exhibition in the Sweet Science or straight out scrapping with a noted mean streak and penchant for dragging out bouts to inflict more pain on opponents who unwisely chose to pepper him with the wrong choice of words during fight promos.
“He’s a guy who fought the better competition … and he has destroyed the competition,” Ward continued. “A-level competition.”
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While that’s true, there is at least one example of “A-level competition” that Crawford (33-0, 24 KOs) hasn’t fought and that’s Errol Spence Jr. (24-0, 21 KOs). Just like everyone else, Ward wants to see this collision course between the undefeated welterweights come to fruition, although he believes it must be planned out and marketed correctly.
“If I were playing promoter, I would say that fight is probably a year away from being right where it needs to be if they both continue to win,” Ward offered. “So, hopefully, we see it.”
That being said, Ward wouldn’t predict a winner, only saying that he rocks with both fighters. And both boxers want the mega bout to happen, as each has publicly stated numerous times.
Do you agree with Ward that Crawford is the current pound-for-pound best boxer in the world? And if so, will he remain just that if a clash with Spence takes place?
