WBA super-welterweight title holder Terence "Bud" Crawford takes on Israil Madrimov this Saturday night, and our resident boxing expert Rob Tebbutt has his picks and prediction for the fight.
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Terence Crawford challenges Israil Madrimov for the WBA super-welterweight title in what could be his toughest test yet.
Just over one year on from his destructive win over generational rival Errol Spence, Crawford now sets his sights on a world title in a fourth weight-class; stepping up to face the unbeaten Uzbek Madrimov, Crawford will look to reaffirm his status as one the world’s best pound-for-pound fighters with a victory.
However, I don’t expect it to be easy. Madrimov is naturally bigger, having competed in-and-around the 154 lbs as a professional and up at 75kg (165 lbs) as an amateur and, at 29-years-old, is in the prime of his career. In his most recent outing, a bout with then-unbeaten Russian Magomed Kurbanov, we saw Madrimov put on a clinic; dominating Kurbanov en route to a fifth round stoppage win to pick up the WBA title.
Nevertheless, Crawford remains the favorite for good reason. At 40-0 and a two-weight undisputed champion, ‘Bud’ is one of the sports most decorated stars. His vicious punching power and finishing instincts saw him go 8-0 (8 KOs) at welterweight, and he is odds on -125 to win by KO/TKO this weekend.
I do see this being a more cagey affair than what we’ve seen in the past in Crawford’s fights. Madrimov is technically very sound and carries solid power at the higher weight, so expect Crawford to take his time and be mindful of what is coming back. A price of +175 for Crawford to win by Decision/Technical Decision feels generous when considering the quality of Madrimov, albeit Crawford hasn’t been the distance since a unanimous decision win over Viktor Postal all the way back in July 2016.
Despite making Crawford a worthy favorite, there is undoubtedly value in Madrimov for underdog backers at an outright price of +450. He is naturally bigger, in the prime of his career and a very well-rounded operator. We saw another pound-for-pound star in Canelo Álvarez fail to make the jump up in weight in losing to Dmitry Bivol a couple of years back, and the same thing happening here wouldn’t be the biggest surprise in the world.
Fight To Go The Distance: Yes +125
Terence Crawford To Win By Decision/Technical Decision +175
Terence Crawford | Israil Madrimov | |
Money Line | -700 | +450 |
To Win by KO/TKO/DQ | -125 | +900 |
To Win by Decision/Technical Decision | +175 | +1100 |
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Odds displayed within this article were correct at the time of writing and are subject to change.