Each fight tells you something about the fighters. Saturday night, at Madison Square Garden on HBO, Terence “Bud” Crawford confirmed what we knew about him. Crawford’s talent is sublime. It’s unquestioned. It remains untested.
Felix Diaz (19-2, 9 KO) is a good fighter. He won a gold medal at the Olympics. He can punch with either hand. He was undressed for 10 rounds by a fighter who was better in every way. In their junior welterweight bout, Terence Crawford (31-0, 22 KO) beat Diaz in every minute of every round. When Diaz had success, Crawford made him pay.
As Diaz began to be lumpier and more discouraged, his corner became more intense. They did the right thing by waiving the fight off between rounds. The fight was long since lost, and their charge was taking a systematic beating.
Crawford isn’t thrilling to watch. He’s too workmanlike for that. He spends a few rounds getting his timing, then sets about dismantling his opponent. It’s not surgical so much as it’s industrial. Everything is orderly and in its proper time. It’s not artful, just efficient.
******
On the undercard, Ray Beltran (33-7-1, 21 KO) scored a highlight reel KO of Jonathan Maicelo (25-3, 12 KO) in the 2nd round of their lightweight bout. The 1st round was fun, and so was the 2nd, then Beltran closed the show with a savage left hook that sent Maicelo’s head bouncing off the canvas. It ended with him going to the hospital.
(Photo: Terence Crawford throws a left against Felix Diaz)
