The eclipse arrived in Nebraska a bit early for Julius Indongo.
Terence ?Bud? Crawford turned the lights out on the former IBF/WBA junior welterweight beltholder?s title reign Saturday with a spectacular knockout to become the only undisputed champion in boxing.
The unbeaten Omahan (32-0, 23 knockouts) is the first fighter in any weight class to hold the WBO, WBC, IBF and WBA belts simultaneously in 12 years and the third boxer in history.
World titles have lost some of their luster in the four-belt era. To guys like Crawford, belts do matter.
?I?m the only one who can be labeled as champion at 140,? he said. ?And that?s a big deal to me.?
Anyone familiar with the ultra-competitive Crawford knows he wholeheartedly means that. It?s the main reason that it?s somewhat hard to believe he would give that up immediately to move up a weight class.
Certainly a move to welterweight (147 pounds), boxing?s deepest and most star-studded division, is the next big move for Crawford. The two-division lineal champion has nothing left to prove at 140, though a battle of unbeatens against amateur rival Mikey Garcia (37-0) would be a grand junior welterweight exit.
But that doesn?t mean he needs to rush off to welterweight. Potential bouts against the likes of Keith Thurman and Errol Spence ? Crawford said he wants to fight both ? may materialize. He?s earned the right to bask in the glory of his unique place in history until something prompts a choice.
Crawford fears none of the top 147-pounders anyway, saying that he?s all for a move up.
?There?s only going to be one name at the end of the day, and that?s going to be Terence Crawford,? he said.
Unified light heavyweight champion Andre Ward, considered by many to be the top pound-for-pound fighter, said on ESPN Saturday that Crawford is a special talent who truly desires to be great.
?You?ve got to face the other top guys in order to get to that point,? Ward said. ?Not a lot of guys are doing that today. He?s one of them, and he?s got all the rewards and all the spoils to show for it.?
That?s why Crawford should wait for the right fight, not just any fight, before moving up. He?s a superstar now. He drew 12,121 to Lincoln on Saturday. His fight was the second-most viewed on cable this year.
Crawford?s hall of fame promoter, Bob Arum of Top Rank, has a plan in the works for later this fall.
?Bud is going to go with me to Australia in November for the (Jeff) Horn-(Manny) Pacquiao rematch,? he said, though that bout isn?t yet finalized. ?And, hopefully, we?ll be able to match him with the winner.?
While that plan will get the unbeaten star into the welterweight division with an immediate title shot, neither of those fights move the needle the way the next bout for the only undisputed champion should.
Horn is the weakest name among the current welterweight champs. Pacquiao is 2-2 his last four fights.
The champion from Omaha should aim higher. He should demand the biggest bout out there.
Crawford should call out Floyd Mayweather Jr.
That isn?t normally the style of the usually humble Crawford. He never calls a fighter out. But the timing of his full unification at 140 opens a window for a potential megafight that isn?t so unrealistic.
Crawford will watch, at least at some point, Mayweather?s made-for-money match with UFC lightweight titlist Conor McGregor this Saturday. The former five-division world champion is coming out of his short retirement for a spectacle in which most think he won?t seriously be challenged.
Mayweather, after a potential win Saturday, will look to retire again at an unprecedented 50-0. But the final two bouts on that hall of fame ledger will be against a faded ex-champion and an MMA fighter.
For a boxer who refers to himself as The Best Ever, that?s not exactly leaving at the top of the game. If Mayweather looks great this week ? and there?s no reason he shouldn?t ? Crawford should point that out.
The undisputed 140-pound champ believes he?s the top fighter in boxing today. He should use that leverage while issuing a challenge to the longtime pound-for-pound king before Mayweather is done.
The Best Now vs. The Best Ever.
Hardcore boxing fans would eat that up. It would be a real fight.
It?s highly unlikely that Mayweather, who wants to protect his undefeated record as he retires, would want any part of fighting an in-his-prime Crawford, who is 10-plus years younger and improving.
But recording a final victory over his sport?s only undisputed champion would lend tons of credence to his best-ever claim. And, frankly, Mayweather would earn enormous respect within the sport ? not to mention another huge (though not McGregor- huge) payday ? for taking the challenge, even if he lost.
Crawford, meanwhile, would land the superfight he deserves. And if he were to beat Mayweather, he would ascend to the pound-for-pound throne. If he lost, he?d do what Saul ?Canelo? Alvarez did after being defeated by Mayweather ? continue to be a star in the sport for years to come.
None of this will happen. Crawford won?t call him out. And Mayweather won?t take on a significant challenge.
Still, it would be interesting to see Crawford go for it. His stock is as high as ever. And he and Mayweather would be on nearly the exact same timetable ? having both just fought ? to make it happen.
Crawford relishes, and thrives in, competition. He talks repeatedly about fighting for history and legacy.
?Your dream is to become world champion. And, after that, you want to become something bigger than world champion,? he said Saturday. ?You want to go to the highest level possible that you can go to.?
The Best Now vs. The Best Ever. There isn?t a level any higher than that.
