Terence Crawford has said that he is ready to “shock the world” when he takes on Saul ‘Canelo’ Alvarez in a historic fight on Saturday night.
‘Bud’ is moving up two weight classes to take on the Mexican at the Allegiant Stadium in Las Vegas, Nevada, and the 37-year-old is bidding to become the first male boxer to become an undisputed champion across three divisions.
Canelo will put his WBA (Super), WBC, WBO and IBF super-middleweight belts on the line for this bout.
Alvarez, 35, had previously laughed off rumours of a potential fight with the American, citing the size difference between the pair, but his head was turned by Turki Al-Sheikh, who has helped get the super-fight over the line and into existence.
The Mexican said that this bout would be “one of the biggest fights of my career”, adding that it “means a lot” and would “go to the very top”.
Crawford, meanwhile, said: "I'm feeling great. I am ready to go shock the world.
“This fight is going to be stamped in the history books. Anybody can be a nobody, and from what everybody’s been saying, I haven’t fought nobody."
Crawford is the underdog going into the contest, despite being the only one with a flawless record.
He sits at 41-0 with three knockouts, while Canelo comes into this with a 62-2-2 record, and 39 finishes.
Canelo’s most recent defeat came back in May 2022, when he was beaten by Dimitrii Bivol at the T-Mobile Arena by unanimous decision.
That ended a near nine-year unbeaten streak that began following his loss to Floyd Mayweather.
The pair’s press conference was almost marred by UFC president Dana White’s feisty response to a question directed at him regarding the Muhammad Ali Act - an American policy that shields boxers' rights and ensures that there are no potential monopolies.
"This is obviously a long discussion. If you want to talk about that then set up an interview. This isn't about me," White said.
"You have a question for these two, no? Beat it.”
That law does not apply to White’s bread and butter sport, MMA, which means that White’s UFC promotion can create their own world titles.
