Via Allan Fox: PBC’s Tim Smith explains why the weight class clash between Terence Crawford and Errol Spence Jr. not done is based on economics. Smith believes boxing fans won’t buy the Crawford vs. Spence. Instead, they will steal it and not pay.
Unbeatable 147-lb WBO champion Crawford (38-0.29 KOs) hasn’t been built into a PPV star by his promoters during his 14-year professional playing career.
Smith says Crawford will want too much money to make the fight with Spence, and fans won’t support it by buying it in large enough quantities.
Crawford has not been built into a PPV . attraction
“Economics and you don’t really want to offend someone like Terence Crawford, who is such an amazing talent, and I’m not going to take anything away from his talent,” Tim Smith said of Top boxing champion When asked why the fight between Errol Spence Jr. and Crawford has yet to be made.
“But he hasn’t been built into a pay-per-view star,Smith continued about how Crawford failed to capitalize on his success in the ring by turning into a big money attraction.
“I’m not saying that to throw the ball at him, but you have to continue his record,” Smith said of Crawford not being a PPV draw. “You have to go and see what he’s up to in the pay-per-view fight he’s been in, has been in.
“It’s not my job to tell anyone how to tell him [Crawford] how to make him pay per view star We’ve got enough work to try to turn our guys into pay-per-view, but he’s not built yet,” Smith said of Crawford before his former promoters. build into a PPV star.
“Believe me, if there’s money in him fight Errol Spence and he can get what he wants, and Errol can get what he wants, that fight will be done, but you don’t. wanted to offend him,” Smith said of Crawford.
Reasons why Crawford has not become a PPV attraction:
- Southpaw
- Striker
- Lack of punch combination
- Too focused on defense
- Shy / reserved personality
- Not comfortable talking trash
Smith: Fans will STEAL Crawford vs. Spence
Smith continued on to Crawford. “No one wants to do that. Like I said, he’s a proud champion, and you don’t want to do that to him.
“From a business standpoint, it’s a fight that can excite fans and all the people out there screaming about pay-per-view and too much. They don’t buy it [Spence vs. Crawford] anyway. They won’t spend any money to make it a success.
“They will steal the war, but they won’t support pay per view. Smith talking about Crawford. “Well, not necessarily what he needs. What he wants.
“I don’t know what that number is, but I would think that number will be VERY high. I do not participate in those conversations. It’s just looking at the sport’s history, and I don’t think he should be offended, I really don’t,” Smith said of Crawford.
It’s too risky to do a Crawford vs Spence fight if you’re a promoter because Terence has no proven track record in PPV.
All you can go on is Crawford’s failed PPV match with Shawn Porter, Amir Khan and Viktor Postol trying to determine if it’s worth the risk to line up a match between him and Spence. .
Crawford & Spence is running out of time
“What is your belief in this 2022 war? Is that 6.5 out of 10? ” Max Kellerman talks about Max on boxing show on ESPN when asked if the fight between Spence and Crawford will take place in 2022.
If the fight between Crawford vs. Spence isn’t going to be implemented any time soon, these guys will be old relic, warriors living off their achievements many years before.
It is likely that by the time the Crawford-Spence war is fought, these men will not be the best fighters in the 147-lb division.
For now, Jaron ‘Boots’ Ennis may be the #1 boxer in the tournament, but he won’t get a chance to prove it against either of these two as they won’t be fighting him.
Spence and Crawford will avoid Ennis like a plague and let fans draw their own conclusions that this guy is the best with a score of 147.
“Yes, I feel relatively good about this because now that Terence Crawford is a promotional free agent and has left the Top Rated, it opens up a bit of a window of opportunity because we know PBC doesn’t. wants Errol Spence to lose to Crawford if he doesn’t. with them,” said Mike Coppinger.
“So, Crawford will work with PBC? I’m not sure, but it was a big win he got by taking out Shawn Porter. Errol Spence will take action against Yordenis Ugas.
“I don’t understand why this war can’t happen at the beginning of the year or the beginning of 2023, but we’re also running out of time with this one,” Coppinger said of Crawford vs. Spence. “That seems to be the theme, Max.
“That’s what I don’t like about PBC and the way Al Haymon does business there,” Kellerman said.
“It annoys me because throughout history we have had a place where a dominant promoter with a large barn was often trying to get selections on opponents they had no control over. their earners either they don’t make the war or else they’ll try to wait for someone else’s contract, right? Or they don’t make the fight.
“That’s what it appears to have happened here. They did [PBC] trying to wait for Terence Crawford’s contract, it was an obvious strategy from the start but maybe it works. Kellerman said: “If we get the fight, great.
Crawford-Spence has a short shelf life
“The problem is with me, How long does the war last? Kellerman said before we don’t believe these guys are really in their prime anymore. “I mean, were we there for Errol Spence in a car accident?”
Crawford and Spence have shown signs of overcoming that in their recent games, and it will only get worse the longer they wait.
During Crawford’s final battle, he received punishment from the janitor Shawn Porter. Just imagine if it was Jaron ‘Boots’ Ennis or Vergil Ortiz Jr inside the ring with Crawford. It would be bad for the Nebraska natives.
Spence has also aged since his fight with Porter in 2019. Spence has only fought once since, looking unimpressive when he defeated Danny Garcia in 2020. Spence’s car crash in October 2019 has taken a toll on his game and he is unlikely to return what he lost.
With Spence’s eye injury he suffered last August, his career is now in jeopardy. Some fans thought it was crazy that Spence chose to face Yordenis Ugas in April in his first fight after eye surgery for a retinal tear, and they may be right.
“They need to do this now in the next 12 months, 18 months because it’s not going to last the way it used to,” Kellerman said of the Crawford vs. Spence needs to be done soon.
“Max, look at the fight between Kell Brook and Amir Khan. They’ll be fighting next month,” Coppinger said of two equally British rivals Khan and Brook. “Who else cares?
“That war should have happened eight years ago, and I would hate it if it happened here. Errol Spence is about to have surgery to repair the detached retainer. So who knows where he is? But he has a great performance left to make the fight bigger than ever,” said Coppinger.
“It was one of the bad lessons from the Mayweather era, 50-0,” Kellerman said. “Another lesson is that sometimes the interest from the boxers and the fans is completely counterintuitive.”
Mayweather has created a blueprint for risk-free fights
“Fans want to see fighters take risks and fight great, but fighting great means these guys suffer damage that can last a lifetime,” Kellerman said. “The blueprint that Mayweather came up with was, no, didn’t give them what they wanted. ”
Kellerman was right about Mayweather creating the blueprint in choosing not to give fans the fights they wanted to see. Mayweather painted himself as a genius for years waiting until fan interest peaked before going head to head with Manny Pacquiao in 2015.
What Mayweather did was started with a fear of Pacquiao rather than a practical strategy. Before fighting him, Floyd waited until Pacquiao faded and lost to Tim Bradley and Juan Manuel Marquez.
Boxers and their promoters now avoid risky fights they don’t believe they can win, but not because they’re following Mayweather’s blueprint.
They’re avoiding doing risky wars out of pure fear, and they’re worried about fans losing interest in following them when they start to lose money.
“Then demand is pent-up, and it ends up being a bigger, number one event. And second, if you’re his opponent past his prime, it’s also a less dangerous fight,” said Kellerman. “It makes a lot of sense from a fighter’s point of view.
“But it’s not good for the fans; Let’s be honest about it,” Kellerman said.
“This is where the boxing industry really goes wrong,” says Coppinger. “For me, it’s less about fighters and more about wars. Give your best fights in the ring because no one cares about the losses.
“We want to see the action, and we want to see the entertainment. And the more battles you join, the more popular star you become in the market, in my opinion. Manny Pacquiao has had eight losses, and this is where the UFC really gets it right.
Yes, different motivations, different pay structures, but boxing needs to be about making the biggest fights and worrying less about building stars, Coppinger said.
