“Boots ain’t got [anything] that Crawford needs, nothing at all,” Bradley said on his channel. “Well, Boots go up, if you go up to 160 and you wipe out the whole division there and you win all the straps there, maybe that might be enticing.”
That’s a steep demand for a fighter who recently moved to 154.
Cleaning out 160 could mean Ennis having to go through Carlos Adames, Denzel Bentley and Aaron McKenna. Yoenli Hernandez presents an additional obstacle if the dangerous Cuban gets his hands on one of the belts.
Even 43-year-old Erislandy Lara isn’t necessarily an easy night. His age is considerable, but his Cuban amateur schooling, sharp timing and technical ability have allowed him to remain effective long after most fighters decline.
Getting the necessary fights wouldn’t happen overnight, either. Ennis could spend close to 24 months satisfying Bradley’s demand, assuming the champions are willing to fight him and negotiations move quickly.
Yet Bradley doesn’t believe Crawford needs those two years to prepare for Boots. He thinks Crawford destroys him today.
“Crawford would knock the dog [expletive] out of Boots Ennis,” Bradley said. “I’m telling y’all right now.”
Bradley later predicted a “brutal” knockout, criticizing Ennis for lunging, rushing his attacks and fighting without enough discipline.
That leaves an obvious question. If Boots is easy work for Crawford today, why should he first have to conquer a middleweight division containing fighters who would present serious challenges for Crawford himself?
Bradley’s demand doesn’t make Crawford-Ennis more attractive. It potentially delays the fight until Crawford is around 40 and Boots has spent another two years developing against bigger men.
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