Top Rank honcho Bob Arum is not counting out former undisputed welterweight champion Terence Crawford in the rumored fight against unified super middleweight champion Canelo Alvarez. According to several reports, the pair is close to hammering out a deal to fight in September in Las Vegas.

Even though ‘Cinnamon’ has been iffy about taking up Crawford on his challenge until a few days ago, Saudi Boxing figurehead Turki Alalshikh seems to have breathed life into the potential bout recently. In the meantime, Arum appeared in an interview with Fight Hype just the other day, expressing his thoughts about the blockbuster in the making. 

The 93-year-old veteran promoter has worked with Crawford to produce several fights in the past and is well aware of his capabilities in the ring. Hence, he didn’t mince his words, revealing the secret to Crawford’s win in the fight. “Because Crawford has a unique talent,” he said. “He’s a great boxer-puncher and he is totally ambidextrous.”

“So he drives his opponent crazy because the opponent trains to fight a right-handed fighter and ends up fighting a southpaw and that’s what happened to Errol Spence,” Arum added. It’s worth mentioning that Errol Spence Jr. was utterly outmatched during his fight against Crawford in 2023. Despite being looked at as a neck-and-neck battle, Crawford proved he was superior.

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“Spence trained to fight a right-handed fighter and all he saw was a southpaw fighter,” Arum told Fight Hype. “I think what Crawford is looking for is a Manny Pacquiao [vs Oscar] De La Hoya fight.” For context, like Crawford, Manny Pacquiao, then 29, was moving up two weight classes from lightweight to welterweight to face De La Hoya, which many saw as a daunting challenge.

Crawford is facing a similar situation, but Canelo is the younger man, unlike the Pacquiao-De La Hoya fight. Regardless, Bob Arum has backed Crawford over every other fighter, including Floyd Mayweather. 

Not just Canelo Alvarez, Bob Arum says Terence Crawford could beat Floyd Mayweather

Bob Arum believes Terence Crawford could have handed Floyd Mayweather his first loss if they fought in their primes. Arum cited Crawford’s unique ambidextrous fighting style as a key factor. “Crawford [beats Mayweather] because Crawford fighting a guy his size is unique,” Arum told ESNEWS in October 2023. “The one thing that Crawford has that most other fighters don’t have is that he is totally ambidextrous. So when he shifts from orthodox to southpaw, he is equally effective either way.”

Mayweather parted ways with Arum in 2006, buying himself out of his contract for $750,000 to pursue greater financial opportunities. Reflecting on his decision, Mayweather said, “As soon as I bought myself out of my contract… I made crazy money when I was my own boss.” Crawford, like Mayweather, later left Arum to take control of his career.

That said, it appears that Bob Arum’s view of Terence Crawford hasn’t changed much over the last year. However, whether Arum’s confidence in Crawford transfers into the actual fight against Canelo Alvarez is yet to be seen. Do you agree with Arum?