WBO welterweight champion Terence ‘Bud’ Crawford came unglued during Friday’s weigh-in after being shoved by his opponent Jose Benavidez Jr. during the face off.
(Photo credit: Mikey Williams/Top Rank)
Crawford then threw a lead right hook that missed by Benavidez’s chin by less than an inch. From there, the two teams pulled the fighters apart to keep things from escalating.
Crawford (33-0, 24 KOs) weighed in at 145.4 lbs, and his opponent Benavidez weighed in at 145 lbs. Crawford’s low weight and slender built during the weigh-in makes you wonder whether he’s going to be able to handle being in with bigger welterweights like Errol Spence Jr. in the future. Crawford looks like he’s not going to rehydrate much by Saturday night.
There’s been bad blood between Crawford and the 26-year-old Benavidez for months. The emotions seemed to spill out on Friday when Benavidez shoved Crawford hard during their face off in Omaha, Nebraska. Crawford could have just let it slide, but he reacted angrily in taking a step forward and aiming a right hook to the jaw of Benavidez. They say you should never throw a lead right hook, but Crawford had the element of surprise on his side in choosing to throw a punch instead of shoving back, which is what fighters normally in these types of incidents. Crawford was playing for keeps with his decision to risk having his fight canceled had he landed the shot. Had Crawford hurt Benavidez, he would have had a hard time defending himself in being criticized for his decision to land a punch in response to a simple shove. Shoving is the norm during weigh-ins in this day and age. Throwing punches is crossing the line like Crawford did is crossing the line
Crawford-Benavidez will be fighting on ESPN and ESPN Deportes this Saturday, October 13 at the at the Chi Health Center in Omaha, Nebraska. This is a voluntary defense for the 31-year-old Crawford for his WBO belt that he won earlier this year in stopping Jeff Horn in the 9th round. The boxing public wants to see Crawford fight IBF champion Errol Spence Jr., but it’s still too early for that fight to take place. As such, Crawford and Spence will need to defend their titles for a little while longer before the two of them eventually square off in a unification fight in the future.
Other weights:
• Shakur Stevenson 128 lbs vs. Viorel Simion 128.4 lbs
• Carlos Adames 153.6 lbs vs. Joshua Conley 155.4 lbs
• Mikaela Mayer 129.6 lbs vs. Vanessa Bradford 128.8 lbs
• Steve Nelson 171.6 lbs vs. Oscar Riojas 171 lbs
• Mike Alvarado 142.2 lbs vs. Robbie Cannon 141.8 lbs
