Errol “The Truth” Spence Jr. is a young undefeated unified IBF/WBC welterweight champion, and he currently sits atop of the 147-pound division.
The legendary eight-division world champion and current WBA titlist Manny “Pac-Man” Pacquiao is just beneath him, followed by WBO champ Terence “Bud” Crawford.
Spence and Crawford are the two undefeated American champions ranked in the top five pound for pound. A showdown between them brings up the boxing nostalgia of old, fights like Sugar Ray Leonard vs. Tommy “Hitman” Hearns and Oscar De La Hoya vs. Tito Trinidad come to mind.
It’s seldom you see two undefeated guys in the same weight class and ranked in the top five go at it for pound for pound supremacy.
This fight seems like its going the way of Floyd Mayweather vs. Manny Pacquiao, where the two combatants are on other sides of the street and separated by a promotional feud.
Bob Arum promotes Terence Crawford, while Al Haymon and the PBC (Premier Boxing Champions) handle Errol Spence Jr., and it’s the main barrier holding up the fight.
In October, Spence was in a scary car accident where he was ejected from his Ferrari and was lucky to walk away with only facial lacerations and a few broken teeth.
In an interview with PBC’s Brian Kenny, Spence said it was a blessing from God that he survived the crash without any severe injuries.
Some boxing fans were quick to suggest that Spence sounded slower than usual and could have some brain trauma from the accident, others said it was probably due to his teeth being fixed making his speech seem off or he had a few drinks in him before the interview.
The speculation is worrisome especially since Spence refuses to take a tune up fight and wants to go into his next fight against one of the top dogs in the division like Manny Pacquiao, Danny Garcia or Terence Crawford.
I think the PBC is not going to put him in with one of those dangerous fighters just yet, no matter how much Spence is willing to face them they will need to put him in with a credible opponent in a winnable fight just to see where he is at physically.
If he starts getting hurt by punches in sparring and his timing and reflexes are off his team would need to consider not letting him fight until he is fully recovered or maybe think about retirement.
If his team lets him go into a fight with someone like Manny Pacquiao in May or June of 2020, it could be a very dangerous fight for Spence.
Pacquiao as shown in the Keith Thurman fight is still deadly and ferocious in his 40s.
He was able to take every single thudding power shot on the chin by Thurman and even dropped and hurt the bigger, younger fighter before winning a hard-fought split decision.
Pacquiao is still a dog at 41. He might be past his prime but even this older version of him could be too much for Spence coming off a car accident.
A fighter like Spence is a warrior, and his pride and ego won’t let him show hurt even if he is feeling some affects from the crash he won’t admit to it. I hope his trainers keep a watchful eye on him and see his progression in training camp and if he looks off they need to make the right decision – not a monetary one.
