Can Terence Crawford do better than Billy Joe Saunders

No. Billy Bo Peep Saunders swept those all those rounds up until he got broke.

 

I think Canelo was on major juice for the Saunders fight because he knew how good a boxer Saunders was and was scared of losing.
He one-punched Saunders face in when he couldn't even hurt ex-140lb Cotto back in the day.
Saunders was not fragile and is actually naturally bigger.
That was possibly the most suspect performance of Canelo's career.

 

I don't think Bud can 'dominate' Canelo in boxing terms but I do think he can win rounds.
Crawford is very patient when he needs to be. He can reset again and again until he finds an angle he likes. He doesn't really pull straight back when disengaging and he can counter punch. Longer reach, better stamina, decent speed.
Bud can win rounds while still being responsible. If Canelo doesn't slow him down early maybe Crawford takes it deep.

 

Maybe...leaning yes. I totally think Bud beats the crap out of Saunders and stops him. Maybe later than Canelo did. Do you think Saunders stops Madrimov?

 

I never rated Saunders. I think the undefeated Madrimov stops him. Maybe easier than Canelo did or Bud would.

 

Might wanna check those scorecards bud. Billy Bo Peep "Sweeping" all of the rounds is the stuff of fantasy.



https://talksport.com/sport/878275/canelo-vs-billy-joe-saunders-scorecards-judges/

He only won Round 1 and Round 5, and judge "Cheat" 'em also give him the 7th. That's it. Canelo was well ahead on the cards.

https://talksport.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/5/2021/05/E06wWpcXIAEe0-Z.jpg

The suggestion that Billy Bo Peep was "dominating" Canelo causes me to burst out laughing. Sorry I can't help it, that idea is hysterical. While I'm sure some fans had Billy winning some other rounds, in no way could you describe what he was doing to Canelo as dominant or "sweeping" all the rounds as if it was a one sided fight in favor of Billy Bo Peep. He was at best "hanging in there", keeping some rounds close, maybe winning a few, but fighting scared and afraid to engage as most Canelo opponents do.

We hear the same kind of thing in regards to how Amir Khan was doing against Canelo. Khan was winning some say. No, sorry, both Khan and Billy Ho were losing before getting smashed outta there.

As for the question in this topic, it's a good one. Could Bud do better than Saunders, who while down on the cards, was competitive and did win *some* rounds. Could Bud do better than Saunders? That means, could Bud win more than 2 or 3 rounds out of the first 7 if it goes that long? That's a good question that is worth exploring.

But before we answer that, we need first establish how well Billy actually did, which was winning only 2/3 of the first 7. If you think Billy "Swept" the first 7 rounds then that would be a tall task for Bud to match, but since that didn't happen, the question is can Bud win more than 2 or 3 rounds.

 

Around the time of the BJS fight Canelo was dead set on hurting his opponents. He’s kind of passive now so I’d imagine Crawford might survive longer and probably land some good shots in the process. I really didn’t rate BJS’ performance against Canelo, he hardly landed anything, just looked good on his feet.

 

That and the fact that Canelo respects Bud so much means that he'll be even less keen to hurt Bud than he would some others. If it happened, I could see it being more of a sparring session than Canelo's last two fights, which admittedly were both entertaining wars. I mean Canelo Berlanga both men were landing freakin bombs on each others and taking them like Champs. Against Bud, one would think Canelo wouldn't approach it the same, as it would be more skill for skill, with Canelo likely content to carry Bud given the amount of respect he has for him.

But if Bud were to have some early success and seemingly win some rounds, then it becomes more interesting because then Canelo may consider loading up on shots and trying to hurt Bud if he realizes that he can't outbox him, or if he thinks he has a chance of losing on the cards. From Bud's perspective, I don't think that would happen because I think he'd be very careful early on which means close hard to score rounds rather than Bud clearly outpointing him which you pretty much have to do to win rounds against Canelo.

So I think this is a bit of a catch 22 in that I think Bud is definitely capable of winning more than 2 or 3 rounds out of the first 7, but what kind of shots would he run into to achieve that, and could he survive after that. The problem with fighting Canelo is that outboxing Canelo early on comes at a cost. Once you feel that power the fight can change even if you think you're ahead. And then when you find out you're maybe not as ahead as you think you are or not at all. Still I love Bud's willingness and motivation to fight Canelo. Of course he wants that peydey but he's also showing a lot of heart and belief in himself to push for this fight, and for that reason I hope it happens. Because win lose or draw Bud will gain a tremendous amount of respect for taking this challenge, and maybe just maybe he could be competitive, maybe more competitive than Canelo's recent opponents have, due to his skillset. Bud would be in for the fight of his life, but he may well be up for the occasion and give Canelo a very different challenge than he is used to.

 

Yes, let's refer to official cards.

 

Nah borefest to boot

 

Crawford straight up beats Canelo. Alvarez is majorly declining in real time and all the guys he's been fighting just plod forward (Berlanga, Munguia, Ryder, etc). Crawford is far more methodical and while his power WONT be as effective, his mind games will be. Canelo will struggle to time Bud and Crawford will land counter-punches that actually make Canelo hesitant like in Floyd, Lara, or Bivol.

People wont believe it until it happens but Bud wins an 8-4ish decision.

 

I swear to God, I have never seen a fighter as overrated as Crawford.

 

Pure fiction

Outboxing a stronger opponent only works if your strong enough to withstand incoming hits or you can minimize their damage in some fashion. Crawford has neither capability in his arsenal against someone two weight divisions above him who has the best chin in the game. There is literally nothing Crawford can do going forward. Nothing. Anything he tries will result in him getting knocked the hell out.

Crawford will be forced to fight off the backfoot and when he gets cornered, what will he do? He can't outmuscle Canelo so trying to push him off aint gonna happen. Opening up to return fire is suicide against someone much stronger than you who is also a counterpuncher with a granite chin. Attempting to escape with lateral movements will work for a round or two until Canelo starts catching him with those body punches on the way out, slowing Crawford down. All Crawford can do is shell up to take a beating which will take its toll on him until his arms are too sore to continue guarding. What then? He'll start eating punches to the chin and will quickly be KO'ed is what will happen.

This fight would last no more than 3-4 rounds if Canelo decides to come swinging right out of the gate and even then that being generous. Its probably more like 1-2 rounds if Crawford attempts to play trade.

There's really not much of nothing you can do against someone who is much bigger and stronger than you even if their not quite as skilled as you are. You'd need to be truly exceptional at dealing with such opponents, such as Mayweather, Roy Jones Jr, Bivol or Ali. Crawford ain't anywhere near their talents. He should stay at 154 which looks to be his limit.