Car Accident Delays Errol Spence Jr’s Ring Return

Errol Spence Jr won’t return to the ring for a while. 

Spence was a victim in a two-vehicle accident in his hometown of Dallas on Saturday, December 10 and reportedly sustained bumps and bruises from it. His SUV was hit head-on by a 14-year-old unlicensed driver who ran a red light. 

“Probably around May or June, April, May or June. I just got to talk to my team, and hopefully, I recover 100%. I’m sure I’ll recover 100% because I’ve been in worse accidents,”’ Spence told Showtime. 

“Hopefully, I’ll talk to my team, and we’ll come up with a date that suits both of us, and we’ll make it happen.” 

Before the accident, the IBF, WBA and WBC welterweight champion was going to announce his next fight, but now that’s been sidelined.  

Spence was recently ordered to face former welterweight champion Keith Thurman by the WBA while fans have been asking for a matchup against top contender Jaron “Boots” Ennis.  

The Dallas native has been exploring his options ever since WBO welterweight champion Terence Crawford broke the news of his tune-up fight against David Avanesyan, which he won on December 10. The fight put Spence and Crawford’s anticipated undisputed title fight into question. 

Though both boxers have said that they still want it to happen, some boxing fans have cast doubt on if it will ever come together.  

But this isn’t the first time that a car crash has set Spence back. 

In October 2019, Spence was hospitalized in the ICU after sustaining facial lacerations. He was released from the hospital days later and was charged with driving while intoxicated, a misdemeanor offense. He received probation and did not receive any jail time. 

Spence did not fight until December 2020 where he defeated Danny Garcia by unanimous decision. He then did not fight again until April 2022 where he technically knocked out Yordenis Ugas for his WBA super world title. 

Spence was scheduled to face Manny Pacquiao in August 2021, but was forced to withdraw after sustaining an eye injury. Ugas had replaced him in that fight, which was Pacquiao’s final bout.  

“I was going to have a fight announcement three or four days after my accident, but stuff started hurting, so we pushed it back. We’re going to wait on the announcement,” Spence added.