Terence Crawford wins strategic battle with Israil Madrimov to become four-weight champion

The American moved up to super-welterweight, where he took the WBA title from Madrimov

Terence Crawford became a four-weight world champion with a win over Israil Madrimov on Saturday, outpointing the Uzbek in Los Angeles.

Crawford entered the BMO Stadium as a three-weight champion, having reigned undisputed in two divisions, and he enhanced his already stunning legacy with a unanimous-decision win, claiming the WBA super-welterweight title.

Many of the rounds were closely contested, but the American’s experience told in the later frames, securing him scorecards of 116-112, 115-113, 115-113.

With the victory, the 36-year-old stayed unbeaten at 41-0 (31 knockouts), while handing Madrimov his first professional loss (10-1-1, 7 KOs).

Madrimov, 29, had collected the WBA title with a stoppage of Magomed Kurbanov in March. Meanwhile, Crawford’s last fight was a shocking dismantling of Errol Spence Jr last July – a performance that saw “Bud” become undisputed at welterweight.

After Saturday’s main event, Madrimov said he felt he had done enough to win, while the Uzbek’s promoter Eddie Hearn called the fight a “waste of time”, bemoaning a lack of “respect from the judges”.

But while Madrimov competed impressively, especially considering his relative lack of pro experience, Crawford’s ability to increase his output and find the target in the later phases of the fight proved decisive.

After the bout, Crawford was asked about a potential super-fight with Saul “Canelo” Alvarez, to which he said: “If the money’s right, we got a fight, but at the same time, he’s got a fight that he’s focused on. I’m gonna relax, enjoy this win.

“[That fight] is not so important to me. It’s just another milestone to greatness, I suppose. And financially...”

Terence Crawford (right) during his decision win over Israil Madrimov (AP)

Prior to becoming undisputed at welterweight, Crawford was undisputed at super-lightweight and held a world title at lightweight. Saturday (3 August) saw him move up to a career-highest weight at 154lb, and another upwards move to meet Canelo could prove difficult.

However, Crawford played down that idea, saying: “[I’m] not at all [worried about the weight], because I’m pretty sure he could fight at 160lb.”

Mexican Canelo, 34, is scheduled to defend the unified super-middleweight titles against Edgar Berlanga in September.

Reflecting on his clash with Madrimov, Crawford said: “Israil was a tough competitor. I knew he was gonna be tough, I knew all about him when I went to Uzbekistan.

“He’s really strong, he’s durable, he took a lot of good shots. He got me to round 12. He had fast feet, good rhythm upstairs, and he was strong. And he was waiting to counter me, just like I was trying to counter him.

“He wasn’t throwing wild shots like I was wanting him to do. I figured it out from the get-go, but I was being patient. I didn’t wanna rush in with anything; that’s how I got caught a couple of times, trying to eat too soon.”

The southpaw had won 11 straight fights via knockout before facing Madrimov, having last been taken to the judges’ scorecards in 2016.