Terence Crawford never wastes a word or a punch and we should not be surprised by his sudden retirement announcement.
In boxing's long and colourful history, there remains an unfortunate common trend: knowing when to walk away and call it quits. The lure of one final challenge or one final payday often proves to be too enticing, like a flame that dims but never quite dies out. Which is why the decision taken by Crawford - who at 42-0 and seemingly at the very top of his game - is even more refreshing.
The 38-year-old hangs up his gloves as a five-weight, three-time undisputed champion and cements his legacy as one of the greatest fighters in history. Often that term 'great' is overused, but in the case of Crawford, it's hard to argue against; he simply has nothing else to prove.
He has, in many ways, completed the sport of boxing. From lightweight, all the way to super-middleweight, he has conquered all-comers.
I first met Terence 'Bud' Crawford in 2014. The American was in Glasgow to fight Ricky Burns, who was defending his WBO lightweight title. It was explained to me that Crawford was "fine" to do an interview, but that it might be tough going. When I asked if that was because he was shy, the reply was "No, he just doesn't like talking - don't take it personally."
With low expectations, I asked some straight-forward questions to a confident but polite young man who was happy to share some of his wisdom and experiences, including having survived a gunshot wound to the head years previously. I often reflect on this first meeting because a representative of his promotional team shared their concerns about the occasion. "He's good", they said, "but we don't know if he's got the stomach for when it really gets tough."
Hindsight is a wonderful thing, especially in the fight game, but that reservation has not aged well. More than nine years later, there is nobody in the sport of boxing who you'd be more certain could handle the toughest of fight scenarios or the toughest of challenges.
Boxing has also seen plenty of examples of fighters who are unable to level-up once their dream of world honours has been achieved. One imagines that once you have climbed Mount Everest, it can be difficult to find the motivation to go again and scale new heights. For Crawford, this was the beginning rather than the peak.
It would be nine fights and three years later before I would get the chance to interview him again, and the difference was pronounced. In his hometown of Omaha, Nebraska on the eve of an undisputed title fight with Julius Indongo, he had grown in confidence, size and stature. Perhaps it was the fact that the interview took place in his hometown gym - one that he had purchased and renovated - but I sensed it was because he was the best in the world at his weight and he knew it. Kids from the neighbourhood watched from the kerbside desperate to get a glimpse of their hero, and that's exactly what he had become in Omaha, they were proud of him.
That fight was when I truly realised, he was in a class of his own. The bout itself actually took place across the state in Lincoln, but the arena was sold out and the atmosphere electric. Crawford dismantled his fellow champion in just three rounds, with a crippling body shot closing the show in style. To think he would repeat this feat twice more compounds the fact that his skillset would live in any other era in boxing history.
Defensively sound and offensively spiteful, has there been a more clinical finisher in recent times?
My final interaction with Crawford took me to Las Vegas, which had only just reopened following the Coronavirus pandemic. It was a surreal time. I remember standing on the floor of the casino in the Mandalay Bay and being the only person there; the big-fight buzz that usually accompanies these types of events would not arrive until the weigh-in. Bud was set to meet Shawn Porter in a brilliant, all-American clash.
Thanks largely in part to Julie Goldsticker, the brilliant PR representative for Crawford, I was able to interview him in his suite, in the comfort of his own surroundings. If the pressure of a Vegas headline slot was weighing heavy, it certainly didn't. The biggest pressure centred on a online basketball video game against Shakur Stevenson, which I had gate-crashed.
Another thing that stood out about Terence was his situational awareness. We were promised a maximum of ten minutes to conduct our interview, and almost as if he were counting in his head, he signalled that time was up virtually to the second. It was a remarkable skill. Although his brand and profile had grown, his ego-and his team-had not. The same personnel we saw in Glasgow were still at his side in Vegas. I always thought that was one of the keys to his success: consistency.
That fight is best remembered for the way the American closed the show, in what is now a viral clip. After catching the eye of the in-house commentary team in between rounds nine and ten, Crawford was told that ESPN had him down on the scorecards, much to his dismay. Just sixty seconds later Porter was down - and moments later, he was out. It was once again a sign that when Crawford wants to finish matters, he inevitably gets the job done.
Post-fight I was able to engage him in his activities outside of boxing. He talked passionately about a fishing boat he had purchased and that he would be getting out on the water as soon as he could.
Fame never really changed Crawford, and one of the best examples of this would be back in Vegas earlier this year. I have seen the Mayweather entourage obliterate everything and everyone in its path when the Money Team makes their way across the casino floor. Crawford, however, often keeps his circle tight. In the Fontainebleau Hotel on the morning of Mikaela Mayer's rematch with Sandy Ryan, Terence 'Bud' Crawford casually stood in the breakfast bagel line among those starting their day by the pool and others finishing it. Only once was he bothered and recognised by a group of fight fans.
I'm glad that he got his blockbuster moments against Errol Spence Jr and Canelo Alvarez - in what now looks to be his last professional fight. Finally, he got his flowers, 17 years after he started out on his journey.
Can there be anything better than walking away at the top on your own terms. The Hall of Fame surely awaits this generational talent.
