“He Ain’t Beating No Bud Crawford” — Tim Bradley Says Benavidez Would Lose If He Dropped Back Down to 168

Tim Bradley says David Benavidez would lose to undisputed super middleweight champion Terence Crawford if he were to move back down to 168.

Crawford’s Complexity Factor

Bradley states that he re-watched Benavidez’s fight against former IBF 168-lb champion Caleb Plant from March 2023, and believes Crawford is too complex for him. He’d take advantage of the mistakes that he made in his fight with Plant to defeat him.

The Weight Drain Problem

It would be difficult for Benavidez (30-0, 24 KOs) to return to 168, as he’s been campaigning at 175 since 2024. Draining back down to his old weight class at super middleweight would take a lot out of him.

“If Benavidez was at 168 again, he ain’t beating no Bud Crawford. Nope, he ain’t beating Crawford,” said Tim Bradley on his channel. “Shakur was right. He always said it. ‘Benavidez can’t beat him.’”

If Benavidez fought as poorly as he did in the first five rounds against Caleb Plant in 2023, Crawford would have a good shot at beating him. The problem is, Crawford isn’t as big, young, or dangerous enough on offense to get away with what Plant was against Benavidez.

Crawford doesn’t like getting hit and would take fewer risks to land his shots compared to what Plant was doing in his loss to Benavidez. All the running around Crawford did in his narrow win over Canelo Alvarez on September 13th wouldn’t get the job done against ‘The Mexican Monster.’

Why Bud Would Make Him Pay

“The size, though. This is a dude that knows how to use his size, and he puts that pressure on you. He makes a lot of mistakes. Somebody with the complexity of Crawford is going to see all the mistakes and make him pay for them. And, it’s all about making him pay often. I would never bet against Crawford because I know what that man is made of,” said Benavidez.

Crawford wasn’t taking chances against the low-output Canelo, and he would have to throw more punches if he fought Benavidez if he wanted to win. The hit and run wouldn’t get the job done for Bud. It would be admirable if Terence were to fight aggressively like he did against Israil Madrimov and Errol Spence.

We didn’t see that version of Crawford in the Canelo fight, and we’d see even less against Benavidez due to his size and volume.

Dan Ambrose has followed boxing since 2011, sharing his passion for the sport’s biggest stars and battles.