OMAHA. Neb. – A lot was said. Terence Crawford’s answer took some time. Almost 12 complete rounds of time. But it was definitive.
Crawford delivered a thorough break down, then a beat down and finally some concussive punctuation in another performance that says there is nobody better in the pound-for-pound debate.
“I did what I said I would do,’’ said Crawford (34-0, 24 KOs), who narrowly missed Benavidez’ chin with a righthand Friday in a scuffle that began when Benavidez shoved him after both fighters stepped off the scale at the official weigh-in.
Jose Benavidez Jr. only happened to be in the way Saturday night at CHI Health Center in an ESPN televised bout. Benavidez talked his way into the fight, perhaps believing that his advantages in size would give him a chance at taking Crawford’s WBO welterweight title.
In the later rounds, however, it often looked as if Benavidez might have regretted all that talk. In the end, there wasn’t much he could say it all.
“I gave a hell of a fight against the best fighter in the world,’’ he said. “This is boxing. It happens.’’
What happened, however, ended with 18 seconds left in the fight and Benavidez slumped, speechless and beaten in almost every possible way. That’s when Crawford was declared a TKO winner. The stoppage was inevitable. Crawford made sure of it moments before the referee interceded with a right uppercut and right hook that dropped Benavidez. The Phoenix welterweight fell as though he never know what hit him. He was down, on one side ad then rolling over onto his back. His feet were tangled up. He looked helpless.
That was the idea, of course, from a Crawford whose mean streak is potent complement to all of the power he has in both hands.
“I told Benavidez that Terence would kick his ass,’’ Crawford trainer Brian McIntyre said. “That’s what he did.’’
He kept a few other promises, too.
Crawford, who is hoping for a welterweight showdown with Errol Spence Jr., promised not to shake hands with Benavidez after it was over.
“I didn’t,’’ he said.
He then was asked if Benavidez had anything to say to him.
“He didn’t,’’ he said.
Did he gain any respect for Benavidez?
“Not at all,’’ he said.
The succinct Crawford keeps it short and blunt in every place but the ring, where he can make things long and painful.
A Prospect No More: Shakur Stevenson steps up with dazzling TKO win
A prospect began to look like a contender, all within one dazzling round.
Alvarado delivers crushing KO blow
It was a huge punch and maybe a statement. Former junior-welterweight champion Mike Alvarado (40-4, 28 KOs) delivered it with a huge right hook that put Robbie Cannon (16-14-3, 7 KOs) of Fetus, Mo., flat on his back and finished at 2:15 of the second round. Cannon, who was knocked down earlier in the same round, had to be helped up onto a stool where concerned ring-side physicians watched him until he was fully able to walk under his own power.
Carlos Adames (15-0, 12 KO), a super-welterweight from The Dominican Republic, knocked down Josh Conley (14-3-1, 9 KOs) San Bernardino, Calif., once. Then twice. Adames could have knocked Conley down as often as he wanted. But twice was enough to know that even a third would have been too much. It was over, Adames a TKO winner at 2:15 of the second round.
Omaha light-heavyweight Steve Nelson stays unbeaten with powerful TKO
Omaha light-heavyweight Steve Nelson (12-0, 10 KOs) came into the ring wearing a mask. But there is no disguise power for his power. No way to elude it either. Oscar Rojas (17-11-1, 6 KOs) of Mexico couldn’t (17-11-1, 6 KOs). Nelson, who had Terence Crawford trainer Brian McIntyre in his corner, dropped with thunderclap of left in the fourth. Somehow, Rojas got back up and onto his feet. But he was finished. It was over moments later, a TKO at 2:50 of the the fourth round.
Former Olympian Mikaela Mayer (8-0 4 KOs) of Los Angeles scored a powerful knockdown in the seventh round. A dazed Vanessa Bradford (4-1-2) of Canadian from Edmonton, looked up and got up, but a loss had to look like an inevitability. A round later, it was. Mayer won a unanimous decision.
Lightweight Muwendo wins No. 20 with a unanimous decision
Ismail Muwendo (20-1, 12 KOs), a Minneapolis lightweight training in Omaha, scored one for a handful of local fans, scoring a unanimous decision over Andre Wilson (15-12-1, 12 KOs) of St. Jospeh, Mo., with superior reach and a measure of toughness. Muwendo was staggered by straight left hand in the third, then recovered for a 59-55 decision on all three cards.
Benavidez Sr.-trained Jose Valenzuela wins one-sided decision
Seattle super-featherweight Jose Valenzuela (2-0) helped warm up the ring for Jose Benavidez Jr. with a head-rocking, one-sided decision over a shorter Hugo Rodriguez (1-1, 1 KO) of Mexico. Benavidez’ father and trainer, Jose Sr., worked Valenzuela’s corner, the second bout on an undercard streamed by ESPN+.
Calm Before The Storm: Crawford-Benavidez card opens with Keeshawn Williams’ victory
Call it the calm before the storm.
Washington welterweight Keeshawn Williams (4-0-1, 1 KOs) opened the show with a solid, if not spectacular, unanimous decision over Ramel Snegur (2-3-1, 1 KO) of Portland, Ore., Saturday on a card that is forecast to end in a building storm between Terence Crawford and Jose Benavidez Jr.
Williams employed some well-executed body-head shots that staggered Snegur, especially in the third and fourth rounds of a 40-36, 39-37, 40-36 decision
