Eddie Hearn Says Crawford Wants a Fortune to Risk It All Against Jaron ‘Boots’ Ennis

Eddie Hearn says Terence Crawford is going to want “loads of money” to fight Jaron ‘Boots’ Ennis because he knows what kind of threat Ennis poses to him. He states that Crawford (42-0, 31 KOs) won’t fight Ennis unless he’s paid a massive purse.

(Credit: Emma Brawley Matchroom/Boxing)

Hearn Sounds the Money Alarm

“That is a fight for the ages,” said Matchroom boss Eddie Hearn to Fight Hub TV about Jaron ‘Boots’ Ennis vs. Terence Crawford. “Crawford is only going to fight ‘Boots’ if there’s loads of money on the line because he knows how good Ennis is. He’s not going to fight anymore unless it’s a lot of money.:

I don’t know about Crawford-Boots being a “fight for the ages.” Hearns is going a little overboard with that kind of talk. It’s a good fight, and it would be fun to see what the young Ennis could do against the 38-year-old Crawford, knocking him off his high horse.

A more fun fight would be to see how ‘Boots’ does against some of the super middleweights, like Christian Mbilli, Lester Martinez, and Osleys Iglesias.

Those fighters throw a lot more punches than Crawford, and they stand in the pocket to battle. You won’t see them running around the ring like Crawford was doing against Canelo. Fans would get their money’s worth if one of them fought Ennis.

“His biggest challenge is Crawford. He has earned the right to ask for tens of millions of dollars, and you can only give him that kind of money in super fights. Cawford knows how good Ennis is. Why would you fight Ennis?” said Hearn.

Is Crawford Protecting His Legacy?

Crawford is now likely to be protective with his matchmaking now that he’s become popular to some extent from his fight against Canelo Alvarez. What that means is he won’t take a risky fight against Ennis unless Turki Alalshikh pays him a John D. Rockefeller-like fortune to fight him, possibly in the $100 million range.

It’ll depend on how worried he is about ‘Boots,’ and whether he’s worried about his legacy being hurt by a loss. Also, he may have an idea in his head that he’s taken his place as ‘The Face of Boxing.’ If that win gave Crawford delusions of grandeur, he’s going to expect $100 million+, and if it’s not given to him, he won’t fight.

“You tell me what fight is out there that will pay Crawford the money he wants?” said Hearn.

For Crawford to agree to a fight against ‘Boots’ Ennis, he might want a bump up in pay from the $50 million smackers he made to fight the faded Canelo Alvarez on September 13. ‘Ennis is a whole different animal than the flat-footed 35-year-old Canelo. He can do everything Crawford can do, but he has better offensive skills.

‘Boots’ doesn’t rely on stalling out the rounds by moving, or waiting to counter his opponents the way Crawford does. He actually initiates by being the aggressor, throwing punches, and attacks. That’s why he’s already surpassing Crawford in popularity. It’s the same reason Errol Spence was more popular than Crawford. He had a fan-friendly style that made him a crossover star in the U.S, just like past greats like Oscar De La Hoya.

The reality is, the only two fights out there that will pay Crawford a fortune are these two:

1. Canelo Alvarez (rematch): That depends on whether Turki Alalashikh is interested in financing a second fight. It’s not a good sign that he enquired about whether David Benavidez can still make 168. That suggests that his interest is in Benavidez fighting Crawford, not Canelo.
2. Jaron ‘Boots’ Ennis: This is easily the best option for Crawford if his focus is getting another monstrously huge payday before he retires to his mansion in Omaha, Nebraska. I would say Benavidez is the biggest money fight for Terence, but he’s already said no to a battle against ‘The Mexican Monster.’

It looks bad that Crawford is refusing the fight because he’s been talking about being placed on the Mount Rushmore of boxing. Avoiding Benavidez is a signal that Crawford isn’t cut from the same cloth as the greats on that mountain.

He’s not the risk-taker of Sugar Ray Robinson, Muhammad Ali, Joe Louis, or Sugar Ray Leonard. You can add a whole bunch of others that Crawford doesn’t measure up to in the courage department among the all-time greats.

When you think about how those greats were willing to risk their hides to fight the best, then you hear Crawford refusing to fight Benavidez, which shows that he’s not one of them.