Terence Crawford has revealed the 7-month long process behind his successful move up to the 168-pound division to capture the undisputed super-middleweight titles from Canelo Alvarez.

Crawford beat Canelo last month via a unanimous decision to become the undisputed champ at 168, making him the first male undisputed champ in three weight divisions. 140, 147 and 168. He moved up two weight classes from 154, having not boxed at 160 or 168 before, which made the win even more impressive.

There were concerns over the additional weight before the fight, with some feeling it would hamper Crawford’s speed and reflexes. However, that was not the case, with Canelo saying Crawford had ‘everything’, which was a result of Crawford preparing for the biggest fight of his life beginning all the way back in February.

Crawford explained that while campaigning in the lower weight classes, his constant presence in the gym was primarily driven by the need to manage his weight. By removing the stress of a massive weight cut and then building muscle, Crawford was able to increase his strength without sacrificing the speed and stamina.

“When I was fighting at these lower weights I had to always keep myself from growing. When I was at 147 everybody was like ‘man, he’s a gym rat.’ I’m always in the gym anyway but I had to stay in the gym because I had to keep my weight down and stay in reasonable touching range to be able to make weight. So when I was able to work out, not worry about what I do in the weight room or what I do nutrition wise, my body just started doing what it do.