In a recent appearance on 'Pound for Pound with Kamaru and Henry' (which will be linked below) Terence Crawford created some waves by stating that Errol Spence's career was not Hall-of-Fame worthy. It was bad enough that he beat him decisively back in the summer of 2023, now Crawford has added insult to injury to many of his fans who still haven't gotten over that defeat.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=J4n07ELpF9U
Yeah, you could say that Crawford is damaging his own legacy by diminishing Spence's career accomplishments. After all, if that's your signature victory, the last thing you want to do is to downgrade it. You never heard the likes of Ray Leonard, Thomas Hearns, Roberto Duran and the late Marvin Hagler, ever take pot shots at one another's career. Yes, they will dispute some of the results of their memorable contests, but there is an understanding that their careers all elevated one another. That's why they are labeled the 'Four Kings'.
A rising tide lifts all boats. In this instance, Crawford sunk Spence like the Titanic.
German Villasenor
Now, is Spence worthy of permanent residence in Canastota one day? Well, the case for him is that he was a guy who unified three of the four belts at welterweight, and has a series of solid victories over Shawn Porter, Yordenis Ugas, Danny Garcia, Mikey Garcia and Kell Brook. He was also on the pound-for-pound lists for several years. There was a good deal of time where he was considered an elite prizefighter.
Personally, I always thought he was very good, but a bit overrated by his loyalists, who believed he was among the top five boxers in the sport.
What hurts his argument is that he only won titles in one weight class. That alone does not disqualify him, after all, Hagler was a career-long middleweight. But unlike the Marvelous One, he wasn't undisputed in his weight class. Also, that loss to Crawford was a truly lopsided one. As much as the victories matter, how your losses come about do too. It's not clear if Spence will fight again. If he doesn't, his career mark will be 28-1 (22 KOs)
PBC
I do think that by today's standards he does make a case for the Hall-of-Fame. How strong a case, well, you can have your own opinions on that.
But what I found interesting is that there was a group of fans (most likely Spence sycophants) on social media who stated that Crawford also wasn't worthy of such an honor. Hey guys, I know the night of July 29, 2023 is a day that will live in infamy, and something you will never truly get over. But let's get this straight, not only is 'Bud' a shoe-in for Canastota, he should be a first-ballot guy.
Bottom line is that when you win major titles at four different weight classes and go undisputed in two of them, along with being considered the top guy on many pound-for-pound lists (or at least in the top three or four) for the better part of a decade, it's a no-brainer. No matter what happens against Canelo Alvarez in September, his place is already secure.
Naoki Fukuda/Top Rank
If he can't get in -- and trust, me, he's getting in -- from this point forward, basically nobody else should, either. And there are more than a few that have accomplished much less than Crawford who are members of the International Boxing Hall-of-Fame. Right now, it's Crawford, Alvarez, Oleksandr Usyk and Naoya Inoue who are sure-fire Hall-of-Famers from this current era.
The reality is this -- and this does not apply to Crawford -- the bar is lowered at this point for being a Hall-of-Famer. In an era, where boxers fight less than ever, with careers that might span less than 40 bouts (look at Spence's ledger), there will now be resumes' that will be much thinner with less data points to look at when examining a fighters accomplishments and careers.
With four-belts available and inactivity so rampant, the game is watered down. This doesn't just apply to boxing, there are those who believe the NFL and the Pro Football Hall-of-Fame has become the Hall-of-Very-Good in recent years.
Ring Magazine
This will drive the historians and purists crazy, but there really is no stopping this because these induction events are a part of the business, and you need to select new members every year to keep them going. Without them, what's the point?
So yeah, the standards of today, are not the standards of yesteryear.
3KR
This weeks edition of 'the 3 Knockdown Rule' with Mario Lopez and I features a return visit from Jim Lampley, who discusses his new book ('It Happened!') and his career path:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qqK-NgREbXw
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