'Beautiful to watch' - Is Crawford greatest of his era?

Terence Crawford extended his undefeated grounds to 40 fights

"For each you guys who said I was excessively small, I was really excessively strong."

While helium often prefers a quiescent assurance successful mean life, helium comes live betwixt the ropes and successful the moments aft his epic show against Errol Spence Jr helium was brimming with joy.

The 35-year-old was, simply put, cleanable against his astir nonstop rival. Great fighters emergence to the juncture successful the large fights, but lone a peculiar 1 tin marque different elite boxer look truthful average.

"It was beauteous to watch," Barry Jones said connected the 5 Live Boxing podcast.

"It was thing special. We knew however large Crawford was, but against different large combatant you can't ever amusement the greatness successful you, you person to excavation out.

"But helium did - and helium made a large combatant look very, precise ordinary."

Special is simply a connection often overused successful boxing, but not successful the lawsuit of Terence 'Bud' Crawford.

He faced - and took down - his top adversary. Like him, Spence was undefeated, a long-reigning champion and wide considered a pound-for-pound great.

And yet Crawford made occurrence look truthful easy, knocking Spence down 3 times earlier the referee ended the punishment successful the ninth round.

Spence, for each his talents, couldn't get adjacent him and it was evident to anyone watching that proving his worthy meant a batch to Crawford.

"Each and each clip I stepped up, I proved you each wrong...each time," helium said.

"Write immoderate large stories astir Terence Crawford. Don't hate, don't accidental thing negative, conscionable springiness maine my props.

"For each you guys who doubted me, this is the Terence Crawford era."

His squad were conscionable arsenic elated. Posing for pictures aft the quality conference, Crawford handed the Ring mag loop to his supporting unit to clasp and beckoned to immoderate of his children to articulation them.

• As it happened: Crawford dismantles Spence
• LISTEN: 5 Live Boxing - Is Crawford the champion combatant successful the world?

The Omaha autochthonal and his entourage, which includes caput manager Brian 'Bomac' McIntyre, are incredibly tight-knit. Crawford is acold from the detached superstar and inactive lives successful Omaha, Nebraska, wherever helium grew up.

Some onlookers felt Crawford and Spence's penchant to debar trash talking and contention successful the build-up meant the lawsuit lacked stardust.

Indeed, with Las Vegas hosting large events similar Deontay Wilder v Tyson Fury successful caller years it felt arsenic though Crawford v Spence mightiness conflict to scope those aforesaid heights.

But Wilder and Fury's illustration skyrocketed due to the fact that of their archetypal combat successful 2018 that ended successful a draw. Their rivalry and deliverance of an all-time wow infinitesimal successful that opening brushwood paved the mode for superstardom and a trilogy of epic bouts.

With Eminem accompanying Crawford for his ringing locomotion earlier a show that volition unrecorded agelong successful the memory, combat nighttime was genuinely erstwhile the magic happened. As it should be.

It was Crawford who was yielding the wand and helium who volition present reap the rewards.

Crawford is the archetypal antheral boxer to triumph undisputed titles successful antithetic value classes

He surely stakes a assertion arsenic the world's champion combatant currently. But aft 40 fights and 40 wins, 18 consecutive satellite rubric fights and the archetypal antheral boxer to triumph undisputed titles successful 2 value classes, Crawford has a beardown lawsuit for being the champion combatant of his generation.

On the question of his bequest arsenic an all-time pound-for-pound great, helium said: "I'm up there.

"I ever privation to wage homage to the fighters who came earlier me. Without them determination is nary me."

Crawford was ever himself earlier and aft the fight. He has an edge, but respect remains paramount to his character. He gives it and expects to person it.

He crossed paths with Spence astatine the quality conference. In betwixt their appearances, and erstwhile Crawford personally handed Spence backmost his WBC, IBF and WBA (Super) titles, helium gave him a hug and 1 last connection of encouragement.

The brace person been each other's changeless shadows successful their welterweight years.

"This is simply a combat that's been talked astir for galore years," Crawford added.

"When I locomotion successful the store, everybody asking me, 'when you warring Spence? When you warring Spence? Dad, this dude accidental you're frightened of Spence'.

Spence wants a rematch to hap astatine 154lbs

"Me ever having to perceive this guy's name, it's similar a enactment of caller aerial that I get to respire due to the fact that we yet done it."

But is it yet over?

Spence has the enactment of a rematch, but wants to bash it astatine 154lb arsenic the 33-year-old says helium has ever struggled to marque 147lb.

Crawford was unfastened to the idea, saying helium had considered a determination up successful value earlier tackling Spence.

It is hard to ideate who mightiness situation him astatine welterweight.

Undefeated Americans Jaron Ennis, 26, and Vergil Ortiz Jr, 25, whitethorn beryllium excessively greenish to springiness a existent relationship of their champion against Crawford.

Following Spence to airy middleweight mightiness suit Crawford. He has already achieved truthful overmuch and it is not mislaid connected the American conscionable however agelong helium has been competing astatine the highest level.

"In 2 months I'll beryllium 36 years old. I've been boxing since I was 7 years old," helium reflected.

"I've been doing sports each my life. I've got to beryllium down with my squad and speech astir the future. I don't know."