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The welterweight superfight between Terence Crawford of the WBO and Errol Spence Jr. of the IBF, WBA, and WBC to determine an undisputed champion will eventually take place on June 17 in Las Vegas, according to sources who spoke to The Ring. The formal announcement is anticipated to be made on April 22 during the Gervonta Davis vs. Ryan Garcia fight.
After Crawford's promotional contract with Top Rank ended last year, allowing Crawford to negotiate with Premier Boxing Champions, led by Al Haymon, the two had engaged in lengthy, drawn-out discussions.
The parties engaged in lengthy back-and-forth talks but were unable to reach a compromise; as a result, Crawford abandoned the agreement and engaged in combat with David Avanesyan.
Keith Thurman, the former unified 147-pound champion, was supposed to be Spence's opponent in late 2022, but the Texan withdrew due to a traffic incident. Early in 2023 was the scheduled time for that battle, but nothing ever came of it.
In late January, Crawford met with Golden Boy executives Oscar De La Hoya and Bernard Hopkins at their headquarters in Los Angeles to discuss signing a deal. Crawford's mandatory opponent according to the WBO is Alexis Rocha, but it seems like the Puerto Rican governing body will let Crawford fight Spence first.
Many of the talks last year took place in front of the public. The main players this time seem to have settled matters behind closed doors. Additionally, the fact that Spence-Thurman, Crawford-Rocha, and Crawford signing with Golden Boy are no longer being discussed favors one of the greatest and biggest bouts ever.
For 413 weeks, Crawford, the third-ranked boxer in The Ring's pound-for-pound rankings, has maintained that position. While Spence, who is rated No. 4 on The Ring's pound-for-pound list, has been there for 290 weeks.
The contest would also be for the vacant Ring welterweight championship and possibly for the title of top pound-for-pound boxer in the globe.