By: Sean Crose
Golden Boy Promotions honcho, and Hall of Fame fighter, Oscar De La Hoya is working to sign WBO welterweight titlist Terence Crawford onto the roster. De La Hoya posted a pic of himself and Crawford, along with fellow Golden Boy Promotions honcho (and fellow Hall of Famer) Bernard Hopkins on Saturday night. De La Hoya then told Chris Mannix he’d like to see Crawford face Alexis Rocha. What’s more, De La Hoya made it clear he liked the idea of Crawford facing Virgil Ortiz after that. Lastly, and perhaps most importantly, De La Hoya said that he could make a much hoped for fight between Crawford and fellow welterweight titlist Errol Spence become a reality.
There’s a lot to unload here. First, Crawford hasn’t been able to land a fight with Spence up until this point. Each side is blaming the other, but the truth is that the highly anticipated fight, although now past it’s sell-by date, is something fans would like to see. De La Hoya says he can make it happen. Yet he’s indicated he can make it happen AFTER Crawford fights Rocha first, and then Ortiz. The truth is that the 35 year old Crawford isn’t getting any younger, nor is the 32 year old Spence. Talks have dragged on for so long that some fans have pretty much decided a Spence-Crawford fight isn’t going to happen.
What’s more, there’s a new breed of welterweight on the way up. Great as they are, Crawford and Spence aren’t Floyd Mayweather and Manny Pacquiao. If they meet too far past their respective primes, there’s less of a chance the Spence-Crawford bout will be a major attraction. If Crawford were to first face Rocha and Ortiz, it would be over a year at least before he and Spence were to get inside the ring. On top of all that, although Rocha and Ortiz are talented, no one fees they’re on the level of Spence.
On the other hand, Crawford doesn’t have a ton of options at the moment. Having the backing of a major organization like Golden Boy Promotions means there’s less of an opportunity for his career to continue stagnating. It also means people who truly know the ins and outs of negotiations will be having his back when it’s time to sit down discuss a major bout.
It is, to be sure, an interesting situation.
