Crawford vs Mayweather Jr, Pacquiao, Durán, Chávez, Whitaker: ¿How does he get out of this?

I'm not sure. I could envision him beating everyone and at the same time, losing to everyone. That's kinda the issue with Crawford. The eye test says he's great but there are many questions I have about him that may never be answered.

1. Vs. Floyd: I have never seen him fight someone who is faster, elite at distance control, accuracy, defense, counter punching, etc. before. There is no fight on film of him against that style. If Floyd wanted to fight a negative fight and make Crawford have to find him all night, could Crawford even deal with that? I don't know because we've never seen him face a fighter who can box and move like Floyd.

2. Vs. Pacquiao: The closest style he's faced to Pacquiao was Gamboa. Gamboa gave Crawford a lot of problems until he timed him and hurt him. Maybe against Pacquiao he struggles to find that timing? Maybe he gets hurt trying to time Pacquiao and it changes the course of the fight? But at the same time, one could argue Crawford wasn't in his prime at 135 when he faced Gamboa. So maybe 140 would be his best bet. I think out of everyone on this list, Pacquiao is Crawford's best chance because Pacquiao is susceptible to counter punching. Crawford is an elite counter puncher. Pacquiao does have a major technical flaw of leaving his head on the center line when he attacks. I could see Crawford timing him and hurting him.

3. Vs. Chavez is interesting to me. Never seen Crawford face someone who can apply pressure like Chavez can. Chavez will bring pressure all night long. I would favor Crawford for one reason. He's bigger than Chavez. Crawford was a big 140 fighter. I think at 135 Chavez probably beats him but not at 140. I don't see a smaller fighter bullying Crawford around the ring. I think once Chavez gets close, Crawford would be able to easily tie him up. I think he would be able to maintain distance with his movement. I do think Chavez will feel the power coming back from Crawford with his counters to deter him enough. I don't think Crawford stops him but he wins a decision.

4. Vs. Duran: Most interesting fight on the list to me. Crawford is a counter puncher and Duran fights in a way that makes counter punching a nightmare. Duran is not the type of fighter for anyone to fight in the pocket unless the opponent is just way bigger than him. He uses too many feints and probes that throw the timing of counter punchers off. The only two ways to beat Duran is by boxing him from distance or pushing him back. I think Crawford would box Duran from distance. He's taller and has a significantly longer reach advantage (8 inches). When Leonard utilized his reach and kept Duran at a distance, he struggled. Even lesser fighters who used movement made it difficult for Duran even if he won (Viruet, Bizarro). This may be controversial but Duran was not a classic ring cutter either. Duran didn't really cut the ring off. Duran was more of a stalker. He followed his opponent, mirroring their movements and then when they committed to a punch, he would counter them in combination, close the distance and get inside but Duran wasn't cutting off exit routes like a classic pressure fighter. Fighting that stalker style is hard to do against someone who can box from distance at a high level and has a significant reach advantage. I think Crawford wins if he boxes and Duran wins if Crawford fights him in the pocket. I think Crawford has the abilities and skillset to keep Duran at bay at 140. 135, I think Crawford would get stopped. He wasn't as developed as he ended up becoming at 140.

5. Vs. Whitaker: Not sure how I feel about this one. I think at 135 just from it not being Crawford's best weight, Whitaker would win due to it being his best weight. But at 140, I might favor Crawford. Whitaker struggled in his career fighting bigger guys (Rivera, De La Hoya, Hurtado, etc.). I know Whitaker may not have been at his best in some of those fights but it's not hard to see why he struggled. Those guys are bigger with longer reaches. It presents a different challenge. I could see Crawford missing a ton of punches but at the same time, I think the size difference would play a factor. I could see Crawford hurting Whitaker when he does land. I honestly think Whitaker might be too small.

So overall, I would pick Floyd at 135/140. I think he could box from distance and make it a boring fight. I would pick Crawford to lose to Pacquiao at 135 but stop Pacquiao at 140. I think he loses to Chavez at 135 but beats him at 140. I think Duran stops him at 135 but Crawford wins at 140. Whitaker beats him at 135 but loses to Crawford at 140. Apologies for the long winded response.

 

He won't. Floyd and 09-12 Manny both beat him at WW. Duran and Chavez both mangle him at 135, and Whitaker boxes his ears off. He's definitely good enough to be competitive though.