Terence Crawford is preparing for the toughest fight of his life as he jumps two divisions to face Canelo Alvarez, but in 2008, he was close to an even tougher fight.
Terence Crawford hopes to become a three-weight undisputed world champion with a win over the face of boxing in Canelo Alvarez.
Crawford has had 41 fights in his 17-year career, and is embarking on his biggest challenge yet on September 13th in Las Vegas.
It was in his very first year as a professional, though, that a horrific attack almost prevented it all, but proved what Crawford will sacrifice for victory.
Terence Crawford survived a bullet to the head and got in the ring two months later
In 2008, Crawford turned pro after amassing an amateur record of 58-12.
His debut saw the Omaha native KO 2-0 Brian Cummings. Bud scored another first-round stoppage in his next fight, before going the distance with a durable journeyman.
Five months on from his debut, Crawford moved to 4-0 with a decision win over debutant Aaron Anderson. It was just after this fight that things went terribly wrong for Bud.
The month after his fourth win, Crawford was shot in the right side of his head after shooting dice with friends.
He was in a car at the time, and the bullet reportedly changed trajectory after entering through the windshield, narrowly avoiding a more fatal angle.
Crawford evaded death that day as the bullet passed under his right ear, but was forced to drive himself to the hospital with a badly bleeding wound.
Two months later, the pound-for-pound elite was back in the ring, and stopped 5-6 Michael Williams in five rounds to secure his fifth win.
When asked in an interview by WBN what happened to his shooter, Crawford said, “The shooter is dead, he got shot in the head.”
Terence Crawford may be putting on too much weight ahead of Canelo clash
Roy Jones Jr believes Crawford can beat Canelo despite his size, but one man is not as easily convinced.
Though many favor Canelo as a result of his weight advantage over Crawford, there is one who believes the issue is not Crawford weighing too little, but weighing too much.
Abel Sanchez, former trainer of Gennady Golovkin and current coach to Filip Hrgovic, suggested Crawford is packing on too much weight that won’t give him any added benefit.
Sanchez claims Bud bulking too much in such a short span of time will be of detriment to his speed, while also not giving him time to acclimatize to increased power either.
Sanchez believes Crawford will weigh too much going into the fight to be able to effectively utilize his advantages in speed, and will subsequently be picked apart by Canelo as he begins to slow after the early rounds.