Crawford-Spence: Trash talk gets ugly

By Norm Frauenheim

LAS VEGAS – Just when it sounded as if not much more could be said about Terence Crawford-versus-Errol Spence Jr., more was.

A lot more.

The last formal news conference at T-Mobile Arena took an unexpected turn Thursday. There was trash talk. It wouldn’t be boxing without at least some.

But this edition turned nasty with exchanges between fighters and fans from each of their camps.

At one point, it was punctuated by a racial epithet from Crawford, who used the N-word in an angry response to a Spence fan who had mocked his chances at beating Spence Saturday for the undisputed welterweight title.

“You ain’t gonna do nothing,’’ Crawford said to the fan. “You a (expletive), doing all that talking.’’

Initially, it was thought that the profane exchange was fueled by family members, who were at opposite ends of the seating arrangement in front of a stage on the floor at T-Mobile.

But Spence said the fan was not part of his family.

“He’s not a cousin,’’ Spence said. “He’s from Dallas.’’

Spence, who grew up in  the Dallas area, said Crawford went too far.

“He was definitely going a little too far,’’ Spence told reporters after the formal part of the news conference. “I mean, his people were saying stuff to me. I just smiled.’’

It wasn’t clear why emotional fans were even allowed to attend. The volatile moment – spontaneous combustion at a staged news conference – was sparked by the fight’s magnitude and escalating tensions as the opening bell nears.

Also, Crawford, who is known to be defiant, has never been afraid of confrontation. He has often said that he had a problem with his temper when he was younger.

The controversial language also stood out for another reason.

There was no real trash talk between the fighters themselves. Their mutual respect has been there since the fight was resurrected after it looked as if it would never happen in the wake of failed negotiations last fall.

Their mutual respect throughout the many media appearances doesn’t surprise Stephen Espinoza, Showtime’s President of Sports and Event Programming.

“If it’s Errol Spence, you’ve got to respect him,’’ Espinoza said just days before the pay-per-view bout. “If it’s Terence Crawford, you’ve got to respect him.’’

They do.

But fans and family put a different twist into the equation for a long-awaited fight that – for the last couple of months — has sold itself.

Even the trainers, Brian “BoMac” McIntyre for Crawford and Derrick James for Spence – got into the act Thursday.

McIntrye mounted the bully pulpit and said: “Comes a time when you can’t hide. War Time, War Time, War Time.’’

Then, it was James’ turn. He looked at McIntyre, a super-heavyweight who appears ready to go sumo.

“My chant is this: Time to Eat, Time to Eat,’’ James said. “Reason I’m saying this is he (BoMac) hasn’t missed a meal in years.’’

James and BoMac then went on to exchange a few more shots. James suggested that Crawford’s lofty pound-for-pound status and lone belt – The World Boxing Organization’s version of the 147-pound title – was manufactured against questionable opposition.

“Who you fought,?’ James said as he looked at Crawford.

Finally, BoMac just said:

“Shut the eff up.’’

On a hot afternoon when a news conference was about to go off the rails, that was the best suggestion of all.