Tim Bradley says that he believes that Terence Crawford could “surpass Muhammad Ali’ in greatness if he stays in the sport to defeat Janibek Alimkhuly, David Benavidez, and Dmitry Bivol.
GOAT Talk Meets Cold Reality
Tim sounds like he wants Crawford to walk the plank, put his legacy on the line by fighting these three sharks. It’s one way for Terence to carve out a spot on the Mount Rushmore of boxing to surpass Ali, Sugar Ray Robinson, Joe Louis, and Sugar Ray Leonard.
The way things are now, Crawford is trying to take the backdoor route to GOAT status by using a win over the depleted Canelo Alvarez as his path. It’s a sneaky way to try to take Ali’s throne.
Too Big, Too Mean, Too Real
The retired Bradley states that he thinks Crawford fighting Benavidez is a “60/40 either way.” He believes he has a chance of defeating ‘The Mexican Monster.’
How can it be 60/40 if Crawford won’t even dare take the fight with Benavidez? That’s what I want to know.
The fighter he believes would give Crawford (42-0, 31 KOs) a problem is Bivol (24-1, 12 KOs), due to his size, skills, and combination punching. Bradley can see the fight happening if Bivol moves down to 168.
“If Benavidez comes back down to 168, that’s another crazy matchup for Terence Crawford. That’s going to be difficult,” said Tim Bradley on his channel, talking about the threat David Benavidez brings to Terence Crawford.
No GOAT Without the Danger
“When you start fighting guys like Benavidez, who brings stamina, volume, and size. His willingness to walk through a wall to get his victory, like Crawford, that’s a hell of a matchup. 60/40 either way,” said Bradley.
The question is, would Terence be brave enough to take a fight against Bivol? Crawford already point-blank refused to fight Benavidez, saying he’s too big, and that he weighs over 200 pounds.
Bud didn’t sound particularly like GOAT material when rejecting the fight against Benavidez, which would likely pay him close to, if not more than, the $50 million he received for his fight against Canelo Alvarez on September 13, 2025.
“Terence Crawford may need a miracle beating that dude,” said Bradley about Dmitry Bivol.
Ali’s Throne Still Off Limits
“Hey, if Crawford participates in these street fights and he wins them all, man, I’m not going to lie, bro, I think he’s going to surpass Muhammad Ali,” said Tim.
Saying no to a fight against Benavidez suggests that Crawford would reject a fight against Bivol as well, would he not? If Bud’s not up for a fight against Benavidez, why would he agree to fight an equally big Bivol, who did a far better job defeating Canelo than he did?
That fight would obviously pay a fortune, but it would require risk on Crawford’s part, and he would have to put his unbeaten record on the line, unless he wanted to persuade Turki Alalshikh to make it an exhibition match.
Nation Vegas Says: No Ali Talk Without Benavidez
How can Crawford “surpass” the great Muhammad Ali if he’s not willing to fight Benavidez or Bivol? Beating an old, worn Canelo isn’t enough. If Terence moves down to 160 to fight Janibek, a win against him isn’t good enough to shoot him past Ali in the minds of fans. If Crawford won’t even fight Benavidez, he doesn’t belong in the same shrine as the great Ali.
Last Updated on 10/04/2025
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