Spence’s Trainer: ‘The Money’s Not There Right Now’ For A Crawford Fight

One of the biggest gripes boxing fans have is the fact that it takes a while for unification bouts to happen. Whether it is an injury by one fighter or money concerns, something always seems to get in the way. When it comes to a bout between Terence Crawford and Errol Spence Jr., the latter is a big concern.

Derrick James, the trainer of Spence (26-0), is into the idea of a clash between two friends. Spence, the IBF and WBC Welterweight Champion, has faced stiff competition in Samuel Vargas, Kell Brook, Lamont Peterson, Mikey Garcia, and most recently Shawn Porter. “Bud” Crawford (36-0), the WBO Welterweight Champion, has faced Viktor Postol, Jeff Horn, Jose Benavidez Jr., and Amir Khan. Recently, he beat Egidijus Kavaliauskas inside Madison Square Garden.

James believes the style of competition is what separates the two.

“I hope that it happens,” James stated to Boxing Scene. “I want for [Spence] what he wants for himself. If Crawford keeps winning – and I don’t think Kell Brook is better than the last guy he fought [Egidijus Kavaliauskas] – so if he keeps winning and he keeps doing what he’s doing, and Errol keeps winning, we’ll see. It could be possible. I believe that it will happen eventually, but who knows?”

Crawford has personally called out Spence (26-0) before, stating he has FaceTimed him and told Spence he would beat him. They have also traded jabs with one another on social media. All of this depends on Spence’s health. After beating Mikey Garcia and Shawn Porter in 2019, Spence was involved in an accident where his car flipped over after speeding. Not wearing a seatbelt, Spence was ejected from the car. He suffered cuts to his face and damage to his teeth.

Spence currently does not have an opponent scheduled for him. Crawford is interested in a bout with him or Manny Pacquiao. With all the gold on the line, is money truly the only issue? According to James, it appears to be the case.

“The money for the fight, from my perspective, is not there yet,” James went on to say. “Promoters can put whatever they put up, but they’re in the business of making money. And if the money’s not there, especially anytime soon with this coronavirus crisis and most people who buy these fights are not working right now, this will be something that happens down the line. It just pushed the fight back a little bit further, I think. But the money’s not there right now. My perspective is the numbers aren’t there, so we’ll see.”

Due to the coronavirus pandemic, fights are on hold for the foreseeable future. When they do come back, it is expected big fights will be booked. Will Crawford-Spence be one of them?