To be kind, you could say that this is Crawford’s Ray Leonard vs. Marvin Hagler, but even that seems too weak a comparison. The reality is, Alvarez vs. Crawford makes sense only within the parameters of boxing’s new video-game mode, where anything goes so long as it grabs attention and makes money. That doesn’t necessarily make it a bad fight – it certainly isn’t – but it just means it is a fight without any reason for it happening beyond the obvious: money. If, for instance, Alvarez, the supposedly bigger man, beats Crawford on Saturday, does that really do anything for his already considerable legacy? Is he not, in that scenario, just beating up a doughy 38-year-old former lightweight champion whose lack of options in his natural habitat forced him to move up until he reached his limit? Similarly, if Crawford wins, it might only lend credence to the theory behind him moving up: fight Canelo, yes, but fight an older, slower Canelo whose decline has been evident for some time.
