Boxing's Megafight is finally happening

“Finally,”, is what boxing fans are saying and only The Rock could say it better when the news became public that Errol Spence Jr and Terrence Crawford had reached a to fight July 29th at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada. No, this is not a test from the emergency broadcast system, and I don’t believe we’ve all woken up somewhere else in the multiverse.

According to ESPN sources PBC and Terrence Crawford have agreed to a two-fight deal that includes a rematch clause, which has to take place before the end of the year. Now of course a fight of this caliber is expected to do tremendous numbers and I'm not certain what the projected value of the fight was back in 2019/2020, but when you think about it now from a strategic business point of view did PBC, Errol Spence, and Crawford’s “negotiation issues” provoke the demand of the media and consumers to an extreme where they’re able set the market value for this event at record breaking rates before the ink on the contract was dry?

Many in the boxing world at one point of time had given up on the idea of ever seeing this fight happening whether they want to admit it or not. Unlike your typical fights this one will feature two top tier fighters who've been building this fight up for years before anything was finalized. It became and still is without a doubt one of the most polarizing discussions in not just boxing circles but in the sports world in general.

Last year I wrote about how this all came about in an article titled The Coming Of A Storm back in September. In the article I detailed their 1st “unofficial” face off in 2019 when the two met at an event which featured a mutual friend in Maurice Hooker. Spence repeatedly said “When I stop him, they’ll say he was too small”, and Crawford responded saying “they’re gonna say he was too weak and stayed at 147lb too long”.

Both fighters made valid points when it comes to the court of public opinion. Errol Spence and Terrence Crawford’s version of the post-fight reactions are as certain as death and taxes. Going into his 15th year and 40th fight as a pro Terrence Crawford built his perfect record of 39-0 starting as a lightweight. If I were to describe this 5’8” three division world champion out of Omaha Nebraska fighting style, I would say he’s a patient counterpunching boxer that has the legit ability to switch stances from orthodox to southpaw at will and embraces going to the body.

Now we go 667 miles west of Omaha Nebraska to the hometown of the pride of Dallas Texas Errol Spence Jr the unified welterweight IBF, WBC, and WBA champion whose fighting style is what I would describe as the opposite to Terrence Crawford with some similarities and an additional skill set that’s intangible but identifiable to knowledgeable viewers who affectionately labels those types of fighters “a dog”. Spence Jr likes to walk down his opponents by constantly coming forward and bringing pressure from mid range to close distance. Even though Spence is comfortable in close quarters, like Crawford, he also exhibits a level of patience in the midst of the chaos.

Many in the sports world and beyond have shared their thoughts on this epic matchup, and in the court of public opinion we seem to have a hung jury. Truly this is a 50-50 fight on paper. From the casual viewer to the obsessed boxing fan this event has already captivated the consumers and has given media members an event that will provide a plethora of material to discuss and report. I won’t say we’re back in the golden era, but one thing is for sure and that’s the sport as of late has given the audience great fights and this matchup has the potential to make its own legendary mark in the sport of boxing.