This Saturday night, June 9, 2018, the highly touted Terence Crawford will move up in weight to challenge WBO Welterweight champion Jeff Horn for his 147-pound title on the brand new ESPN+ streaming app from the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada.
Crawford, widely regarded as one of the top pound-for-pound boxers in the world, owns a perfect 32-0 professional record and is coming off of an impressive third-round knockout victory over Julius Indongo last August in which he became only the second male boxer of the four-belt era to unify all four major titles, doing so in the Light Welterweight division.
He has since vacated those titles for the opportunity to challenge Horn at Welterweight.
Stylistically, the 30-year-old “Bud” is a well-round boxer, with incredibly fast hands and fight-ending power, which can be seen in his 23 stoppage victories, although it’s important to note that he’s not necessarily a one-punch knockout artist.
In addition to this, Crawford not only has the ability to effortlessly change stances but he has the ability to fight successfully out of either stance as well. The Nebraska native is also an incredibly intelligent and patient fighter, rarely putting himself in danger, but knowing when to put the pressure on his opponent and pour it on as well.
Moving onto Horn, the Australian is a bit less experienced, posting an 18-0-1 professional record, with 12 of those victories coming by way of stoppage. Most recently, he successfully defended his title with an 11th-round TKO victory over Gary Corcoran, but it was the fight prior that gained him recognition.
Last July, Horn took on the legendary Manny Pacquiao in his native Australia, scoring a massive upset victory to steal the title. The victory, however, was highly controversial, as many felt as if Horn was outboxed by Pacquiao.
Regardless of what you made of the decision in that fight, Horn proved to be a tough and durable fighter and he fought back strong in the later rounds against one of the very best fighters of this era. The 30-year-old isn’t the most athletic fighter, but he does move well at times, has shown power in his hands and isn’t easy to put away.
In my opinion, a key factor in this fight is that I simply don’t feel as if Horn has ever shared the ring with a fighter the caliber of Crawford and that includes Pacquiao, who isn’t the fighter he once was. Horn will likely be the larger man, but it’s very possible that Bud will be the far superior boxer.
As boxing betting tips show, Crawford is the resounding favorite even though he is moving up to 147 pounds for the first time.
I expect Crawford to outbox and pick apart Horn in a similar fashion to how Pacquiao did and eventually overwhelm him to score the finish. As I mentioned, Horn isn’t easy to finish, but Crawford appears to be on a different level than many of his opponents and I figure that to be on display in Las Vegas this weekend.
