After he routed Dierry Jean on Oct. 24, Terence Crawford instantly vaulted to the top of a very short list of potential opponents for Manny Pacquiao.
Crawford had long been characterized by Top Rank chairman Bob Arum as one of the three finalists for the honor to meet Pacquiao on April 9, along with Timothy Bradley and Amir Khan.
Even Bradley, Crawford?s close buddy, said that he hoped Crawford got the opportunity.
Top Rank, though, chose Bradley to face Pacquiao, and put Crawford in an HBO bout at The Theater at Madison Square Garden in New York on Saturday against Hank Lundy.
Lundy hasn?t fought anyone remotely as close to as talented as Crawford, who is better than a 25-to-1 favorite to win on Saturday.
Lundy is a hard worker and a determined fighter, but doesn?t seem to be in the same league with Crawford talent-wise. His best chance would seem to be if Crawford were upset he wasn?t chosen to face Pacquiao and was overlooking Lundy.
That, though, hardly seems to be the case.
?I wasn?t disappointed in the least [I didn?t get the Pacquiao fight], even though I would have loved to have fought him,? Crawford said. ?Me and Bradley are good friends. He deserved the fight as much as anyone.
?I?m not in the business of picking and choosing who I fight. That?s someone else?s job, not mine. I?m fighting Lundy and so I?ve gotten ready for him. I?m 100 percent focused on doing my job on Saturday.?
Crawford is a sensational talent but there is no obvious big-money opponent looming for him. He?s clearly the finest 140-pounder in the world, and Top Rank promotes WBC champion Viktor Postal, who is considered No. 2 at 140.
But Postal is largely an unknown and a Crawford-Postal fight isn?t going to sell out any large arena outside of Omaha, Neb., Crawford?s hometown.
If Pacquiao chooses to retire, as he has said he will, after the Bradley fight, there isn?t an easily makeable mega-fight on the horizon for Crawford.
But both Crawford and manager/trainer Brian McIntyre insist it?s not a problem. He?s preparing for Lundy and has no thoughts about Pacquiao or anyone else.
?I don?t worry about any of that kind of stuff, the business things,? he said. ?Once you have a fight, you go into fight mode and you don?t allow yourself to think about any of that. You just get ready for the fight you have. If you keep on winning, things take care of themselves.?
Crawford, who is 27-0 with 19 knockouts and skyrocketing up the pound-for-pound rankings, is trying to evolve as a fighter.
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Terrence Crawford and Hank Lundy pose after the announcement of their fight on Jan. 12. (Getty)
Though he?s looked sensational in wins over Yuriorkis Gambo, Ray Beltran, Thomas Dulorme and Jean, McIntyre insisted there?s another level in there for him to reach.
Crawford is nowhere near a finished product and still can grow as a fighter, McIntyre insisted.
?Terence is 28 and he?s still a young guy in this boxing game,? McIntyre said. ?He?s still in the mode of acquiring knowledge and developing his skills. He has things to learn and things to work on, inside the ring and outside.
?Of course, any time a fighter starts to get famous, he has to learn to deal with all of that and the distractions that come with it. He has to learn to play the game with the networks and the reporters, and all of the things on the business side. But he?s also still improving as a fighter. I think you?re going to see a more mature, aggressive Terence in this fight.?
Lundy has, as McIntyre noted, been ?talking a lot of mess,? but it doesn?t seem to have bothered Crawford.
At this stage, he realizes he?s the hunted and he gets the fact that Lundy needs to do something to draw attention to himself.
Crawford simply is focused on getting better each time out and remaining patient until the big opportunity comes his way.
?I want to be the best I can be no matter who I?m fighting,? Crawford said. ?That?s the truth. If you get more ready for one guy than another, that?s when you get into trouble.?
