Terence Crawford was so sure of his victory on Saturday night that he spent part of the final round with his hands at his side, taunting Viktor Postol.
What he is not so sure of is if Manny Pacquiao will agree to his terms and fight him at 140 pounds in November.
“It will be at 140, definitely, but I’m going on vacation now. We’re not worried about Manny Pacquiao right now,” Crawford said.
Photo: AP
Crawford on Saturday night turned in a dominating performance in a battle of unbeaten champions, knocking Postol down twice on his way to a lopsided 12-round unanimous decision to put himself in the running for a fight with Pacquiao — who has fought most recently at 147 pounds — in November.
Crawford took control of the light welterweight title unification fight with two knockdowns in the fifth round, and then shut down Postol the rest of the way. He was so far ahead in the 12th round that he put his arms down at his side at one point, taunting Postol.
Both fighters came into the bout with titles and records of 28-0. However, Crawford was clearly the best technical fighter, despite giving away significant height and reach advantage to the Ukrainian.
Crawford won 118-107 on two ringside scorecards and 117-108 on the third. The Associated Press had him winning 118-107.
“Postol is a great champion and he was undefeated for a reason,” Crawford said. “We got the job done tonight.”
Crawford, who has won all seven of his title fights, was impressive in spurts as he controlled the fight from the early rounds on. He dropped Postol with the first punch of the fifth round, then dropped him again later in the round after battering him across the ring with a big left hand.
The knockdowns seemed to take some energy out of Postol and Crawford spent the rest of the fight circling and not allowing Postol to get set.
When Crawford did stop to throw a punch, he landed some big shots to Postol’s head.
“That’s boxing,” Crawford said. “That’s how you box, with movement. That’s what boxing is all about.”
Crawford, who was cheered by a vocal contingent of fans from his hometown of Omaha, Nebraska, was a 6-1 favorite heading into the fight, despite both fighters holding identical records and pieces of the super lightweight title.
It turned out the oddsmakers were on target, as Crawford took what was an even fight on the scorecards after four rounds and turned it into a runaway win.
“He was just too fast,” Postol’s trainer, Freddie Roach, said. “I was surprised at how fast and good he was.”
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