Terence Crawford believes he played a crucial role in the establishment of a two-division world champion, whose style is often compared to his own.
The former three-weight undisputed king announced his retirement in December, just a few months after dethroning Canelo Alvarez with a unanimous decision victory at 168lbs.
His most scintillating performances arguably came at 147lbs, however, as the American amassed seven straight stoppages before scoring a ninth-round finish over Errol Spence Jr in 2023.
‘Bud’ was then ordered to defend his undisputed crown against Jaron ‘Boots’ Ennis, the then-IBF mandatory challenger, only to instead move up in weight.
Ennis, meanwhile, was subsequently elevated from ‘interim’ to full welterweight champion, before unifying his division with a sixth-round stoppage of Eimantas Stanionis last year.
Now campaigning at 154lbs, the American is a two-weight unified champion after dethroning Xander Zayas with a seventh-round finish in June.
But while attempting to craft his own Hall of Fame-worthy career, Ennis’ name is still repeatedly mentioned in the same breath as that of Crawford.
Speaking with The Real Report, ‘Bud’ even suggested that ‘Boots’ comparisons have been made for the best part of a decade.
“I feel like Boots’ whole motion is built off Terence Crawford. He should thank me. If there was no Terence Crawford at this pinnacle, who would they be talking about?
“When he was an amateur in the Olympic trials, they were like, ‘Man, this dude fights like you, Bud’.
“I’m going to let him have his era [and] wish him the best. [But] I feel like he’s a hater. Why would I need to hate on him? I wanna see him win; I wanna see him go far.”
The styles of Crawford and Ennis are similar in the sense that, while switching between orthodox and southpaw, both fighters have an aptitude for counterpunching on the front-foot.
