Terence Crawford will drop out of the World Boxing News Pound for Pound top five if he doesn’t fight again by the summer.
The welterweight champion, rated number one by some organizations [two by WBN behind Naoya Inoue], can no longer be considered a top-five P4P fighter if he’s not fighting regularly.
Terence Crawford’s inactivity
Compared to the other four in the WBN top five, Crawford has fought just four times in four years. ‘Bud’ only seems to compete once per calendar year.
Since December 2019, when the run began, Inoue has fought seven times. Canelo Alvarez had eight fights then, while fifth-rated Devin Haney had seven bouts.
Oleksandr Usyk, who sits at three on the list, is in a similar position to Crawford. The fact he only has four fights during that time will eventually go against him. However, due to Tyson Fury delaying their undisputed clash twice and the fight being set for May 18, Usyk can prove activity before removal.
Crawford’s time will run out soon. It will be another full year without a contest for the Omaha man by July. There can be no justification to keep Crawford on the list if his activity levels don’t increase.
A lack of action went against Crawford in 2023. WBN had earmarked Crawford as the Fighter of the Year for 2023 after his brilliant performance against Errol Spence Jr. However, Inoue’s decision to fight twice that year meant his achievements couldn’t be ignored. The Japanese superstar subsequently surpassed Crawford despite the latter’s name almost being engraved on the trophy.
Inoue eventually received the award and proudly displayed it in the Teiken Gym.
The clock is now ticking for Crawford to secure another headlining bout, as July will see the two-weight four-belt ruler drop to at least the sixth position of the P4P list.
Others who keep Crawford at number one should face pressure to do similar, as there is no place on any list for boxers who don’t fight often enough. Anyone competing twice yearly has to be elevated above those who fight once to reward activity.
As it should be.
WBN Pound for Pound Top 10 – March 2023
1 Naoya INOUE
2 Terence CRAWFORD
3 Oleksandr USYK
4 CANELO Alvarez
5 Devin HANEY
6 Dmitry BIVOL
7 Vasiliy LOMACHENKO
8 Shakur STEVENSON
9 Gervonta DAVIS
10 Artur BETERBIEV
Read all articles and learn more about the author, experienced boxing writer, and World Boxing News Editor Phil Jay.
Follow WBN: X.com, Facebook, Instagram, Blue Sky, and Threads.
