The Biggest Takeaways from Terence Crawford and Lucas Matthysse's Victories
The combatant pairs were nearly 1,600 miles apart, but Terence Crawford, Thomas Dulorme, Lucas Matthysse and Ruslan Provodnikov still managed to put on a good show for Saturday night's HBO boxing junkies.
Crawford picked up a world championship in his second weight class with a sudden sixth-round stoppage of Dulorme in Arlington, Texas, while Matthysse and Provodnikov presumably disappointed no one in their 12-round rock 'em, sock 'em robots display at the Turning Stone Resort Casino in Verona, New York.
Matthysse won a majority decision, with two judges giving him a 7-5 nod in rounds, while the third saw it dead even at 6-6.
It was Crawford's first fight since he'd been deemed 2014's Fighter of the Year by the Boxing Writers Association of America, while Matthysse and Provodnikov entered having had a part in the organization's last two fights of the year—Provodnikov in a 2013 loss to Timothy Bradley and Matthysse in a 2014 win over John Molina Jr.
We took a look at the show and came up with a list of five big takeaways, which you can click through to view. And, as always, feel free to drop a comment or two along the way.
Anyone for Seconds? No, Seriously...Anyone?
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The biggest surprise of the night—considering the buildup, action and closeness of the result—was that no one so much as uttered the word “rematch” when it came to Matthysse vs. Provodnikov.
Matthysse referred to Provodnikov as “a rock” in a post-fight interview with Jim Lampley and conceded that he’d been hurt in the 11th round, but Lampley didn’t suggest another go-round during his questioning, even though he’d ranted moments earlier about the two scorecards in Matthysse’s favor.
Given the absence of rematch queries, Matthysse took his opportunity to rightly suggest he’s “one of the best” at 140 pounds and throw his hat in the ring for the winner of Floyd Mayweather Jr. vs. Manny Pacquiao.
Interestingly, Provodnikov never suggested doing it again either, instead spending his time calling Matthysse the hardest puncher he’d ever faced and apologizing to all his Russian fans for the loss.
Hail to the Judges
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It’s boxing’s most reliable Saturday night content.
Whenever a fight goes to the scorecards, a Twitterverse of fans of all stripes is quick to fill up with 140-character mantras suggesting that the judges—regardless of the winners—are corrupt, blind or both.
But when it came to Matthysse vs. Provodnikov, there was no simply ammunition for outrage.
HBO’s unofficial judge, Harold Lederman, had it even at 114-114, matching both the Bleacher Report card and the one penned by ringside judge Don Ackerman. And though the viewpoints of judges Glenn Feldman and John McKaie were decisive for Matthysse, the fact that they were just one round away from even suggests that they saw the same fight everyone else did—a rough-and-tumble affair that would have been no crime as a draw or a narrow win for either man.
The ultimate litmus test came up in the arbiters’ favor afterward, when Provodnikov showed no inclination to criticize the verdict in an interview with Lampley—instead acknowledging and apologizing to his fans for the loss.
Please, Don’t Split Us Up
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The two fights on the split HBO card were in different cities, which obviously provides logistical issues unlike the ones dealt with for a typical Saturday night show.
But there has to be a better way to handle the announcing side of things.
Lampley and his usual ringside colleague, Max Kellerman, work well together and typically provide an interesting and compelling—albeit occasionally one-sided—perspective on the action from their respective blow-by-blow and analyst chairs. When they’re moved out of those roles, though, the end product is not equal to the sum of its parts.
Kellerman was serviceable, but not at all transcendent, while handling Texas blow-by-blow for the Crawford vs. Dulorme fight alongside Roy Jones Jr. In fact, during his initial introduction to the card he seemed far more saddened by the fact that he wasn’t in New York for Matthysse vs. Provodnikov than he was excited about the prospect of seeing one of the sport’s top young stars in person.
Meanwhile, Lampley’s interviews with Matthysse and Provodnikov, which would have probably been handled by Kellerman had he been there, was memorable more for the topic he never raised—a rematch of a close action fight that prompted a standing ovation—than for anything he actually said.
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Repeat After Me
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OK, given the fact that the two biggest stars in the sport are getting together in two weeks and someone figures to win the fight, the chances of Crawford winning a second straight Fighter of the Year nod from the Boxing Writers Association of America are probably slimmer than none.
Still, his smashing start to 2015 indicates he’ll probably deserve some consideration.
The Nebraska native took his act a few states south but showed no let-up from last year’s momentum while smashing ex-welterweight prospect Dulorme into three-knockdown oblivion to win a second belt.
The victory and the shiny new title belt set him up nicely for a match with the night’s other winner—Matthysse—or give him some attractive collateral when it comes to making deals with other big-name suitors at 140 pounds like Adrien Broner, Lamont Peterson or Jesse Vargas.
And if Crawford pairs the Dulorme blowout with a follow-up from that menu, then the May 2 winner might want to hold off on his acceptance speech.
Sign Us Up for Crawford vs. Matthysse
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HBO’s Kellerman suggested it after the first fight, and his disjointed colleague Lampley referred to it again after the second, so why not just go ahead and sign the contracts now?
Because Crawford vs. Matthysse is suddenly the most interesting junior welterweight fight out there.
Given that Danny Garcia’s options these days seem limited to rising to 147 pounds or facing Lamont Peterson in a rematch with their 140-pound belts on the line, it makes the most sense to put the division’s newest star in with the guy who seems to have out-endured all the other likely options.
Matthysse has already fought both Garcia (L 12) and Peterson (TKO 3), and his allegiance to Golden Boy Promotions seems to run counter to the idea of him facing an Al Haymon property like Broner anytime soon. Assuming, too, that he’d want to avoid a sausage-grinder rematch with Provodnikov, a shot at Crawford would provide a chance to ascend to heights he’s never before scaled.
And for Crawford, getting by a recognized commodity like Matthysse—who displayed more boxing skills on Saturday than in his last half-dozen fights combined—would continue his path toward being the sport’s biggest star once the Mayweathers and Pacquiaos of the world cede the stage.
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