There’s nothing like a cockblocked, canceled super fight to draw emails to my Sack. This week, in the aftermath of a stalled or dead Spence-Crawford bout, I got almost nothing but justifiable anger and frustration from readers. So, this Thursday, let’s vent.
The Spence-Crawford Blues
Hi Paul.
I know people say this all the time and I’ve said it before myself, but I think I’m done with boxing now. Spence-Crawford was the last straw for me. How much more time and energy and money can I put into a sport that never delivers what I want anymore? Boxing constantly craps on its fans and I’m just not going to put myself in a position to be crapped on anymore. As if it’s not bad enough that Crawford is fighting Avanesyan, but I wouldn’t even be able to see it for curiosity’s sake, unless I pony up 40 bucks. Then, I’m sure I’ll be asked to pay PPV premium price to see Spence fight some second-rater as well. Why do we, as boxing fans, let ourselves be insulted and humiliated like this? I’m done.
– John from Cincy
Magno.
I don’t want to hear about who’s to blame for Spence-Crawford not happening. I don’t care who’s to blame. I’m out. Goodbye boxing, hello MMA.
– Brandon K.
Hey John, Brandon.
I’d estimate that I received at least a dozen emails from fight fans saying pretty much the exact same thing as you guys. I don’t blame you one bit. I have to admit that even I’ve found my interest in boxing wavering at times.
TC, WTF?
So, TC walks from the Spence fight to fight the WBO #6 ranked fighter? Euro-Bud strikes again! Like I've been saying, TC is, literally, like the best dude from the Euro League saying that he is the best basketball player in the world. Bruh, when you gonna come play in "The League"? Errol Spence is the man to beat at WW, he has the better resume, he has 3 belts, he has the marketability, and he has the metrics. Need I say more!?!? As a side note- he beats Crawford. We all know TC gets hit a lot. When Spence starts landing, Crawford will try to switch southpaw, and Spence's southpaw stance will negate Crawford's. Spence will continue to land and we will either see the "Gunslinger" Crawford get stopped or, for the first time, see Terence get on his bicycle and lose a decision. Anyhow, TC is killing me! If TC is the star everyone thinks that he is, then he needs to FIRE everyone around him because they have done a terrible job with his career. Terence has a reputation for being stubborn but this is "cutting off your nose to spite your face type stuff". Why Magno, why!?!?! Is Spence-Crawford the new (less profitable) Mayweather-Pacquiao?
Best,
– Will
Hey Will.
I said it before and I’ll say it again-- Terence Crawford needs Errol Spence more than Errol Spence needs Terence Crawford. If Bud wants to get to that next level of stardom, he has to go through Spence and there’s just no way around it. That’s why it would’ve been in his best interest to swallow his pride, bend a bit, and do everything in his power to make the fight happen. Honestly, we just don’t know if he did or didn’t do that, but not getting the fight definitely hurts him more than Spence.
But “hurt” is a very subjective term in this particular case because, apparently, Crawford will be getting a career high 8-figure payday for an opponent who, to be diplomatic, represents a mid-second tier challenge at best. Legacy-wise, though, Crawford will suffer. Being tucked away on a small-scale pay-per-view pushed by a service with limited reach also won’t help his negotiating leverage if/when Spence talks resume.
I get where Crawford is coming from. Big money is big money and he truly feels that he’s on par with Spence in every possible area, so he’s not going to accept any less than what he feels he deserves. It’s hard to call for him to be pragmatic in the way he handles his career when he’s been making big money for the last several years doing exactly what he’s doing, finding himself in the right place at the right time to dip into ESPN money and now that BLK money. Bud being Bud has not hurt his bottom line, even if it pulls him further away from the respect as a competitor he feels he deserves.
It’s no secret how much respect I have for the man as a fighter. I’ve been a huge mark for the guy over the years, but you don’t build legacy on what might’ve been or could’ve been or should’ve been. You have to judge a man on the black and white of what’s on his resume. And, as of right now, Crawford is a great talent with just a good body of work. The Spence fight could’ve/would’ve changed that.
And yeah, I still think he beats Spence. I just hope I get the opportunity to see if I’m right.
Startup Money and the Damage Done
This one hurts badly. I remember missing out on Lewis v Bowe. That hurt like hell, but this one hurts twice as bad. In the ring, this was supposed to be everything that May v Pac wasn't. It was supposed to be Leonard v Duran reincarnated. But instead it's just another reminder that suckers run boxing nowadays.
It seems like the only way for fighters to obtain purses as big as their ego is through startup capital. If BLK Prime really forked over 8 figures to Crawford to fight that guy, hats off to team Crawford, his handlers are awesome! No one in their right mind would walk away from 8 figures to fight a fringe contender. However, the startup capital has stagnated any progress that boxing has attempted to make over the years. There's always some new service, app, promotion, etc. That's willing to nudge in between a current negotiation and offer those sugar daddy deals that don't make sense. If Disney (ESPN) and Time Warner (HBO) couldn't sell over 100K PPV buys with Crawford as the headline. What in the hell makes BLK Prime think they're going to see any return on an 8-figure payout? At the end of the day I respect the craft and I'm all for the fighter playing would be promoters like suckers.
The bottom line is that this fight has very little demand outside of hardcore fans. A few casuals here and there are interested in seeing the fight. But the public demand for Spence v Crawford simply isn't there. As a boxing fan, I want to see this fight just as bad as I wanted to see Lewis v Bowe. I was only 16 years old at that time and I can recall almost every one of my peers and family members clamoring for that fight. Conversely, none of my peers or family members are clamoring for Spence v Crawford. Nor do I believe there's a 16-year old in America who is at the quad during lunch talking to the rest of his peers about Spence v Crawford and placing hand shake bets on the fight. The truth is the truth! Boxing has sunk to an all-time low, and there's simply not enough money available to satisfy the egos of the fighters. The egos are 10 times bigger than they were 30 years ago, but the market is 10 times smaller than it was 30 years ago.
-- Nail Rahman
Hey Nail.
I can’t add a single thing to what you just wrote. This is 100% gospel. The boxing business is fatally out of whack and only a full-scape collapse will bring things back to a point where the best fights can be made and everything is all-around healthy. In the meantime, you can’t blame a fighter for taking advantage of the craziness. But, still, all of this shit is strangling the life from the sport.
Got a question (or hate mail) for Magno’s Bulging Mail Sack? The best of the best gets included in the weekly mailbag segment right here at FightHype. Send your stuff here: paulmagno@theboxingtribune.com.