Boxing Challenge: Bud leaves no doubt.

     After all the questions, the opinions, the barbs of who was ducking who, and who was going to be considered the best of the era, for years between Errol Spence and Terence Crawford in what was considered by almost everyone as a fight that could get either way, the anticipated fight wasn't as much a fight as it was a crowning achievement for a fighter that took many barbs and pokes of disrespect as Terence Crawford retained his WBO welterweight title and added the three championships (WBA, WBC, and IBF) when Crawford stopped Errol Spence in the ninth round with referee Harvey Dock saving Spence from excessive punishment.

Spence had taken plenty of punishment already with cuts around his left eye and both eyes suffering swelling, it was a fair stoppage considering Crawford's status as a finisher and Spence's offense declining by the round.

Spence may have won the first round, which was pretty close, and the third saw both men land their share punches in what was the most action-filled round of the fight but other than those, it was all Terence Crawford as he on all cards and only one judge gave him a single round (the third) other than round one.

Crawford knocked Spence down for the first time in his career in the second round with a one-two combination that was more of a flash knockdown than anything that seriously hurt Spence.

It was a different story as the fight moved on with Crawford beginning to take over in the fourth round as his punches began to sting Spence, who was starting to see the damage to his face build up.

In the seventh, Crawford dropped Spence with a short right and would do so again with another right just before the bell.

Crawford pounded Spence in the eighth before the end would come in round nine with a battered Spence in deep waters before Harvey Dock's final wave.

Give Errol Spence credit, he never quit trying but after his mild success in the third round, Spence wouldn't challenge Crawford again as he walked right into the Crawford jab and just about everything else that Bud threw.

I've seen a few comparisons of this fight.

Steve Kim said it was similar to Bernard Hopkins-Felix Trinidad. and I've seen comps by others to Floyd Mayweather-Diego Corrales and Marco Antonio Barrera-Prince Naseem Hamed but the fight that came to mind for me was this- Muhammad Ali-Ernie Terrell,

Yes, the "What's my name" fight when Ali hammered Terrell relentlessly throughout and wouldn't finish Terrell off so he could batter him for fifteen rounds after Terrell refused in the pre-fight buildup to call Ali by his Muslim name and called him "Cassius Clay".

I don't think Crawford was carrying the brave Spence and he wasn't talking to Spence throughout but every punch that sliced through Spence was intended for Al Haymon and his PBC promotion that had excluded Crawford from graphics as a champion, didn't want to give him the chance to fight Spence, and took shots at Crawford's opponents, while never giving him the chance to face their best, although they did allow Shawn Porter to try Crawford after Porter had been defeated by Spence.

Every jab, every combination was coming at Errol Spence but he was taking the ill intent for Al Haymon, the person most responsible for holding Terence Crawford back despite a spectacular career, and like Ali beating on Ernie Terrell for his arrogance, Crawford was beating on Spence for Al Haymon's sins.

And now perhaps we will see again what seems not to be necessary later in the year.

Spence has the option to have a rematch before the end of the year, however, Crawford can select the division where it would take place, and while Spence, who looked very drawn making 147 would love to see the rematch at 154, and Crawford said he would consider that as he wouldn't have to make that weight either.

I wouldn't do that if I were Crawford, not that I think Spence can turn it around in a rematch but why give him any sort of advantage after a defeat?

Unless- Crawford is getting something in return such as agreeing to fight at junior middleweight in return for a rematch taking place in his home state of Nebraska for example, I'd say it's 147 and make Spence decide if a rematch is worth melting down in weight again.

If Spence decides to forego a rematch, I'm not sure what Crawford has waiting for him.

Bud has been talking smack with unified junior middleweight champion Jermell Charlo for years. Still, Charlo is fighting Canelo Alvarez next, and should he lose and decide to go back to junior middleweight, he'll have to fight Tim Tszyu next or drop his undisputed title tag.

Without the titles, I'm not sure Crawford-Charlo is a big draw, and even if everything comes together perfectly, does Al Haymon want to sacrifice another star at the altar of Bud Crawford?

Assuming Crawford stays at 147, the parade of mandatories would have to start soon.

IBF minor champion Jaron "Boots" Ennis is the most intriguing fight of these possibilities but Crawford would be taking a sizable risk for a relatively low financial reward.

WBA minor champion Eimantas Stanionis is a strong fighter and might win a round or two but isn't a match for Crawford.

The WBC has inexplicably rated former WBA and WBC champion Keith Thurman as their number one despite Thurman fighting once in the last four years and that was a decision win over Mario Barrios, who spent most of his career at junior welterweight.

Thurman isn't in Crawford's class but he'll talk a good game and maybe Crawford decides to settle another score if the terms are right.

The top contender for the WBO is Alexis Rocha, who fights for Golden Boy so it might be fairly easy to make but Rocha is overmatched against Crawford and GBP may decide a better road to travel would be waiting for Crawford to move up and then fight for a vacant title against the second rated contender which right now is Canada's Cody Crowley of PBC.

I'm not sure if Terence Crawford will ever have a stage similar to Saturday night's ever again but I'm very sure that Crawford's night and dominance will be remembered for a long time.

I haven't had the time to watch Issac Cruz's split decision win over Giovanni Cabrera or Alejandro Santiago's unanimous decision victory over Nonito Donaire for the WBC bantamweight title.

Boxing Challenge

TRS: 128 Pts (4)

Ramon Malpica: 115 Pts (1)

Vince Samano: 89 Pts (0)

Boxing Challenge: Dogboe nips Gonzalez

      Isaac Dogboe grabbed the final two rounds with the fight even on two cards entering the ninth round and earned a split decision over Joet Gonzalez in the main event of an ESPN+/Top Rank card from Hinckley, Minnesota.

With the victory, Dogboe won a regional title (and shiny belt) but more importantly, moved into position for an eventual opportunity against WBC featherweight champion Rey Vargas or WBO champion Emanuel Navarrete, who owns two wins over Dogboe and one over Gonzalez.

Dogboe started quickly in winning the first three rounds and looked to be on his way to a comfortable decision win before Gonzalez began to rally in the middle rounds with his highlight coming when he wobbled Dogboe with a right hand in the fourth that came the closest to scoring a knockdown from either fighter.

My card was dead even after eight rounds as Gonzalez had been the more accurate puncher with Dogboe throwing more in a good but not great battle.

Dogboe turned up his attack in the ninth and won the final two rounds to win the fight on my scorecard 96-94 and that was the same as both judges that chose Dogboe scored the fight with the Gonzalez judge scoring the exact score for the Californian.

The fight was very close and 96-94 for either fighter is a very reasonable scorecard and although a rematch would make little sense for Dogboe, I wouldn't be against one happening, and I'd wager you could see one a year or two down the road after Dogboe receives his chance at a championship.

I'd think that Dogboe might prefer a chance against Vargas rather than a third try at Navarrete, who owns both of the career losses for Dogboe but an attempt against Vargas comes with the difficulty of Top Rank working with the promoter of Vargas, which is PBC.

As for Gonzalez, the defeat may hurt him a small bit for a short time but close losses against world-class fighters don't tend to hold fighters back over the long haul as long as they remain active and work their way back through the division.

In the co-feature, undefeated lightweight Giovanni Cabrera won a convincing unanimous decision and may have erased the prospect status for good of the once-trumpeted Gabriel Flores, who has now lost two of his last three, and his win sandwiched in between the losses was very close.

Cabrera dropped Flores with the first punch that he threw in the first round as a straight left crashed Flores to the floor.

Cabrera would score another knockdown later in the round with Flores being very fortunate to reach the end of the opening stanza.

Flores won the fourth round (the only one that he won on my scorecard)  and seemed to possibly win the fifth before Cabrera knocked him down again late in the round and deflated Flores for the remainder of the bout.

If Cabrera would have been a harder puncher (only seven knockouts in his twenty wins entering Saturday), Flores could have been seriously injured as he was strafed with blows throughout and was cut and dealt with severe swelling on and under his left eye.

Flores showed plenty of heart in surviving to the end as he did in his first loss to Lopez but the appeal that he once had as the youngest fighter that Top Rank ever signed to a promotional agreement has been extinguished and at minimum, Flores will have to be rebuilt and matched very carefully for his next few fights as he has taken far too much punishment for such a young fighter in his last three matches.

As for Cabrera, he will make a move up in competition in the division soon, maybe against someone like Jeremiah Nakathila, and a win would move him into the top ten in the division.

At 28, Cabrera will need to stay active as he may not have the time to wait for those types of fights.

Boxing Challenge

TRS: 133 Pts (2)

Ramon Malpica: 113 Pts (2)

Vince Samano: 109 Pts (2)