The No. 2 pound-for-pound boxer on the planet Terence”Bud” Crawford is back in action, laying his WBO welterweight title on the line against undefeated Jose Benavidez Jr. that Saturday in the CHI Health Center Omaha in Omaha, Nebraska. The current champion is a favorite in this fight with the challenger coming back in +1000.
Crawford has been favored in each of the last seven conflicts with an ordinary closing line of -1335. The lowest odds of the WBO titleholder were -402 when he defended his title against Viktor Postol. The fight went the distance with Crawford earning the success. Meanwhile, Benavidez has been favored in his last two bouts with an average closing line of -2646 and that he won both of those fights by knockout.
Slimming Down Crawford vs Benavidez
Crawford (-2500) was called the 2018 Fighter of the Year at the ESPYs at LA earlier this season, his second such award in his profession. The 31-year-old has a tremendous ability to switch from orthodox to southpaw, although he is a pure orthodox fighter, keeping his opponents off balance as he peppers with his furious hands and power. Bud has a perfect expert record with 24 wins coming by means of T/KO.
Not only does the Nebraska native possess supreme offensive abilities, but his defensive movements are also equally as striking, rarely absorbing hefty shots. That is Crawford’s first title defense of this belt, having only moved to this weight class in June when he knocked out Jeff Horn to assert the title at the MGM Grand Garden Arena.
Benavidez (+1000) has picked up back-to-back T/KO successes after having his career apparently ended. The California native was shot in the leg 2016 as he was climbing the rankings to a championship battle and physicians warned he might never walk again. Not only is Benavidez fighting again but he’s currently taking on one of the top boxers in the world.
The 26-year-old won the 2009 Golden Gloves in the light welterweight division to make him the youngest-ever Golden Gloves champion at 16 years of age. He trains with Freddy Roach, sparring with the likes of Manny Pacquiao, and he holds a perfect 27-0 record with 18 wins coming by knockout for its orthodox fighter.
Though Crawford is a three-division winner and is the most second-best pound-for-pound fighter on earth, Jose Benavidez Jr. is a legitimate threat. He will have a four-inch reach advantage within the champion and owns comparable punching power. The largest problem is if the 26-year-old can permeate that defensive wall that the 31-year-old can put up. Benavidez was in comparison to the likes of Floyd Mayweather Jr. prior to the shooting and when he can return to form against Crawford, this may be a hell of a struggle.
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