Terence Crawford exited the present pound-for-pound debate final week when he introduced his retirement from the game of boxing, leaving many to fit Naoya Inoue at primary.
The switch-hitter from Omaha, Nebraska made a sudden announcement that he was hanging up the gloves whereas rumours had been swirling that he could rematch Saul ‘Canelo’ Alvarez subsequent yr.
Crawford beat Canelo by way of unanimous choice to develop into a three-weight undisputed world champion. Having received belts in a complete of 5 divisions and compiling an undefeated document of 42-0, he will likely be inducted into the Corridor of Fame with open arms.
Some within the sport would have preferred to see ‘Bud’ proceed, however Japanese celebrity Inoue — who has been undisputed in two divisions — informed Struggle Hub TV that he was not shocked.
“It’s a stage that may come to any fighter, so I’m not considering something about it.”
Crawford has been praised by the likes of Andre Ward and Roy Jones Jr for bowing out on high.
Requested if the retirement places him within the primary pound-for-pound slot, Inoue nodded, although he has thought of himself one of the best for a very long time, above each Crawford and Oleksandr Usyk, the person who rounds out the broadly accepted high three.
The 32-year-old appears to show that one once more when he faces David Picasso on this yr’s last main struggle card. The Riyadh Season foremost occasion is propped up by a bout between Junto Nakatani and Sebastian Hernandez, with tentative plans in place for Inoue and Nakatani to face off in Could of subsequent yr on the Tokyo Dome.
