Las Vegas ? Team Crawford had Viktor Postol scouted well.
Recognizing that the WBC champion from Ukraine needed to have his feet set to throw the jab that sets up his attack, they kept him constantly moving throughout the fight.
Crawford circled around the ring. His opponent followed but appeared hesitant to throw punches.
?He doesn?t like to engage a lot,? Crawford said. ?He?s likes people to come to him. Why not make somebody that?s so used to having people come to him come to you?
?He was frustrated. He wasn?t trying to throw too many shots. He was just trying to get me in certain positions. I had him figured out.?
It made for a one-sided fight. Postol won one round on one scorecard after the third.
?I felt like I was doing everything I wanted to do,? Crawford said. ?I was frustrating him. I took away his jab. The movement was killing him. He was in for a long night.? Fifth-round knockdowns set the tone
Crawford gave credit for the flash knockdown that opened the fifth round to Steven Nelson, the Omaha native who won his third pro bout in the opening fight of Saturday?s untelevised undercard.
Nelson noticed Postol had his left hand down as he went to the center of the ring to open each round. He yelled for Crawford to ?throw the hook off the jump? because the WBC champ was leaving a target.
The WBO champion did and dropped Postol to the canvas.
?I just came out and threw it,? Crawford said, ?and it landed.?
Postol quickly got up, but his gloves touched the floor later in the round after a sensational left counter.
?He tried to throw a right to the body,? Crawford said. ?I caught it, and then threw a straight left. It landed perfect.?
