Boxing

UFC Legend Offers Dismissive Take On Terence Crawford vs Ilia Topuria

UFC legend doesn't think Terence Crawford vs Ilia Topuria would be possible.
Apratim Banerjee|
IMAGO / PxImages

A UFC legend thinks Terence Crawford facing Ilia Topuria is not a real possibility. Crawford made history when became the first ever male boxer to become an undisputed champion in three weight classes following his win against Canelo Alvarez on September 13.

Crawford moved up two weight divisions and did the unthinkable, he became the first man to defeat Canelo at super middleweight and considering the Mexican's legacy in the division, that's an incredible achievement.

Topuria, meanwhile, is known for being one of the best boxers in the UFC. He has been constantly taking shots at Crawford and is aiming for a fight against 'Bud'. Topuria is clearly keen to follow what Conor McGregor did, crossing over to boxing to face the likes of Floyd Mayweather and Tyson Fury.

Former two-division UFC champion Daniel Cormier, though, doesn't think that's a real possibility, and his reasoning makes a lot of sense.

Daniel Cormier on Terence Crawford vs Ilia Topuria

Canelo Alvarez vs Terence Crawford
IMAGO / PxImages

Cormier thinks Topuria is not a McGregor level star yet. Apart from that, he also claimed that the likes of Mayweather and Fury had the ability to carry McGregor and Ngannou to make the fights look competitive to the fans. DC doesn't think Crawford would play around like that inside the ring.

Speaking on the Good Guy/ Bad Guy show, he said, "What Conor did by going as long as he did with Floyd Mayweather was probably some of the most surprising stuff I have seen in combat. Watching Francis Ngannou go as long with Tyson Fury was some of the most surprising stuff I've seen in combat sports."

"I would have expected Tyson Fury to do him like Anthony Joshua did, but I also believe that Floyd Mayweather and Tyson Fury have an ability to make sure that a person can stay in there with them as long as they need them to, to make it look competitive, to make you feel good about it."
Daniel Cormier

"Ilia is taking things out of the McGregor playbook, but you've got to have that stardom, and he's not there yet."

Cormier believes Crawford could actually benefit from fighting Topuria. He said, "I think that's what's going to stop him from getting the fight. But I mean, when you're Terence Crawford, and you've been dying for big opportunities your whole career, could an Ilia Topuria fight be the next thing that's the biggest thing?"

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He added, "Because who's out there for him to fight that's going to be a bigger name, in terms of bringing in a new fanbase to watch Terence Crawford, than Ilia Topuria? There are some legs to it more than it would be normally, especially being that 'Bud' respects the UFC as much as he does, and he knows Ilia Topuria. He could have no-sold him, but he didn't do that."

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Apratim Banerjee
APRATIM BANERJEE

Apratim is a Boxing and Soccer reporter for On SI. He has been in the industry for five years, having also worked for The Sporting News, Sportskeeda, EssentiallySports, and more. After coming from an engineering background, he started pursuing a career in sports media. Apratim also holds an MSc. Sport Marketing degree from Loughborough University London and is a keen practitioner of social media and digital marketing. In his spare time, Apratim likes to play an array of sports and practice calisthenics. He is also an avid enthusiast of improving his martial arts skills.