Confident Crawford ready to take on Canelo: ‘I’m going to be victorious’

Undefeated boxing star Terence Crawford isn’t too concerned about the vitriol he will face when he steps into Allegiant Stadium to fight Canelo Alvarez on Saturday night.

The Omaha, Nebraska, native is more interested in the reaction after what he vows will be a win in the battle for the undisputed super middleweight title.

“I’m going to be victorious and everyone’s going to be talking about it on Sunday,” Crawford said Wednesday, just days before he moves up multiple weight classes to challenge one of the most popular fighters on the planet.

Crawford, 37, knows the crowd will be tilted in favor of his opponent.

“I’m most certain a lot of people from Omaha will be in the crowd, but, of course, it will be a pro-Canelo crowd,” Crawford said. “It’s Mexican Independence Day and he’s done things in great numbers in Las Vegas, like a second home for him. But I’m looking forward to being an underdog. I’m already prepared for that. It’s nothing we’re not prepared for.”

It’s a role Crawford not only embraces, but seeks.

He’s been fighting since age 7, but he wasn’t exactly a prodigy.

Still, he was dedicated to his craft.

Slow start

Crawford lost 12 fights as an amateur and fell short of qualifying for the Olympics, but just kept grinding.

Now, he’s still embracing that underdog mentality even though he’s widely considered one of the most skilled boxers on the planet.

Crawford, who is 41-0 as a professional, has heard critics say he bit off more than he can chew by essentially moving up three weight classes to fight a world champion like Alvarez.

“People are underestimating everything about me,” Crawford said. “But that doesn’t matter. We have to fight on Saturday and all the (questions) will be answered that night.”

He plans to answer the doubters loud and clear.

“Everybody is entitled to their own opinion,” Crawford said. “What one thinks of me doesn’t move me. They can’t fight for him and they can’t fight for me, so their opinion doesn’t matter at the end of the day in my eyes or in my feelings. I’ve been doubted my whole career, my whole life in boxing. I’ve been told I’d never be where I’m at now. I was told I needed to get another job because I wouldn’t be world champion. I’ve been told so many things in my life and I just say, ‘OK, watch me do it.’ With my self-belief, I don’t care what anybody says because I’m comfortable in my own skin.”

That confidence has him on the verge of history.

Legacy secured

Crawford is already the only male boxer to ever simultaneously hold all four major belts in two divisions. He can become the first undisputed champion in three different weight classes with a win Saturday.

Crawford’s legacy is already secure. He believes it won’t be affected by Saturday’s outcome.

“First and foremost, I’m definitely going to win. I’m winning the fight for sure,” Crawford said. “But at the same time, I don’t think losing tarnishes either of our legacies. He’s a first-ballot Hall of Famer and I think I’m a first-ballot Hall of Famer. Win, lose or draw, I think that’s the ultimate goal at the end of the day. To be named with all the great fighters who came before us and be inducted into the Hall of Fame for all we’ve done in the sport of boxing.”

Still, a win would leave no doubt that Crawford deserves to be in the discussion for best fighter of his generation. He knows that.

“I definitely think about it,” Crawford said. “But I’m keeping myself focused on the job at hand because I don’t want to eat before my food is ready.”

Crawford is becoming more and more convinced he’ll win as the fight draws closer. He told broadcaster Piers Morgan he was 70 percent sure he would win during a global media tour in June.

That number has increased dramatically.

“I’m a thousand percent sure now,” Crawford said Wednesday. “You have to think, going into a fight there are so many things that could happen. You never know. You can get injuries, he can get injuries. The judges, the ref, preparation, everything. So you’re never 100 percent sure. If a fighter says they are, they’re lying because you have to go out there and perform at the end of the day.

“But I’m more than ready to go out and perform on Saturday.”

Contact Adam Hill at ahill@reviewjournal.com. Follow @AdamHillLVRJ on X.