Terence Crawford faces another meaningless clash in the Pound for Pound scheme of his career following a WBO mandatory order.
The former undisputed super lightweight champion has struggled to nail down top names and has seen his P4P ranking slide due to this fact.
In nine years, when they fought, Crawford had only faced three boxers rated in the Pound for Pound Top 50.
They were Yuriorkis Gamboa, Julius Indongo [only rated for one fight], and Shawn Porter.
Terence Crawford’s dismal P4P run
Despite this dismal run, Crawford was rated number one on some P4P lists, seemingly solely due to his four-belt achievement. However, getting there left a lot to be desired in the level of opposition.
After disagreeing on terms for a career-defining fight with Errol Spence Jr. due to him accepting an offer from BLK Prime, Crawford is now staring into another event abyss.
This scenario comes about to a WBO Welterweight Championship contest order. Negotiations between Crawford and Alexis Rocha were ordered with the following information.
“Please be advised that the parties herein have twenty (20) days to negotiate upon issuance of this notice. They must reach an agreement for the above-referenced WBO Welterweight Mandatory Championship Contest,” Crawford was told by the WBO.
“If an accord is not reached within the timeframe stated herein, a purse bid will be ordered per the WBO Regulations of World Championship Contests.
“The minimum acceptable bid in the WBO Welterweight Division is $200,000.00 (Two Hundred Thousand Dollars).
“Any of the parties involved may request a purse bid procedure at any time during the negotiation process.
Crawford vs Rocha
“Furthermore, if a purse bid ceremony for the Crawford/Rocha bout is called, this applies. Section 14(e)(1)(2) of the WBO Regulations of World Championship Contests triggers and governs proceedings per Terrence Crawford’s WBO Super Champion status.
“That’s by the rights and privileges conferred by such provision,” added the statement by Luis Batista Salas, Esq, Chairman of the WBO Championship Committee, to both parties.
They concluded: “In closing, the Committee reserves its right to issue all further rulings. That includes but is not limited to serving the best interests of boxing and the World Boxing Organization.”
That final line of text is a bizarre addition, as everyone knows that Crawford facing Rocha is the fight people want to see.
All four governing bodies should join together and order Spence vs Crawford. That would be the correct and only thing to do.
If Crawford does battle Rocha, his already sliding career will continue to tumble down the Pound for Pound list.
