Terence Crawford has been widely recognized as one of the best pound-for-pound fighters in the world. The only knock against him is that he hasn't truly been tested. On November 20 in Las Vegas, every single question the world has about Crawford's greatness will be answered when the WBO welterweight champion defends his title against two-time champion "Showtime" Shawn Porter.
MORE: Terence Crawford vs. Shawn Porter: Date, fight time, TV channel and live stream
Crawford (37-0, 28 KOs) is the former undisputed junior welterweight champion who moved up to welterweight in an effort to begin his belt collection at 147 pounds. He won the WBO title back in 2018 by punishing Jeff Horn but has not been able to face one of the other titleholders due to boxing politics. However, he's made four straight title defenses that have all ended in a knockout to stake his claim as one of the best.
But if the boxing world is to believe that he can potentially become an undisputed champion in a second weight class, he'll have to beat a man who has arguably the best resume among active welterweights.
Shawn Porter (31-3-1, 17 KOs) has faced the likes of Keith Thurman, Errol Spence Jr., Danny Garcia, Yordenis Ugas, Adrian Broner and Kell Brook. He's a former IBF and WBC champion who is looking to get his hands back on gold after falling short against Spence back in 2019. The only top tier 147 pound fighter he hasn't faced is Crawford and we'll find out just how good the WBO champion is because Porter is going to give him his toughest test to date.
Sporting News provides the current odds and offers some insight on how to bet on Crawford-Porter.
Terence Crawford vs. Shawn Porter odds
- Terence Crawford: -650
- Shawn Porter: +410
- Draw: +2300
According to odds from FanDuel , Crawford is a significant favorite at -650, which means it will take a wager of $650 to see a profit of $100. Porter is the underdog at +410 underdog, so a $100 wager would net $410.
Terence Crawford vs. Shawn Porter prop bets
- Crawford by (T)KO: +190
- Crawford by decision: -115
- Porter by (T)KO: +950
- Porter by decision: +700
Terence Crawford vs. Shawn Porter prediction
The betting line here is downright disrespectful. Crawford should be the betting favorite but nobody that has been in the ring with Porter has won comfortably. A -650 for Crawford to win is egregious and makes betting on him to win straight up inconceivable.
Porter isn't a knockout artist but is a ball of physicality that is certain to push Crawford to his limits for every second of every round. Errol Spence needed a late knockdown to squeeze out a split decision and Keith Thurman barely escaped by edging Porter by a single round in their 2016 clash. It's highly unlikely that this will be an easy fight for Crawford. Instead, one should expect a dogfight that will force Crawford to work out of a difficult spot. Porter won't give him any breathing room and will be in his chest from the opening bell.
What Crawford has proven is that his boxing IQ is one of the best in the sport. He's a notoriously slow starter who ramps up the activity once he sees what his opponent has to offer. And Crawford has a habit out of finding an opponents' problem areas and exposing them to devastating results. He hasn't gone the distance since a clinical dismantling of Viktor Postol in 2016.
There are two realistic outcomes here: Porter or Crawford by decision.
Porter has never been close to being knocked out despite being in the ring with big punchers Spence, Thurman and Garcia and he's not known as a finisher. It'll likely see the judges' scorecards, which could end up being trouble for Crawford if he doesn't figure out how to turn Porter's aggression against him sooner rather than later.
MORE: The history of undisputed boxing world champions
It's true that Crawford has never faced someone like Porter who relies on pressure and physicality to get the job done. Porter isn't reckless but he also isn't a very difficult target to hit, either. Crawford is going to have to sting Porter early and find ways to land clean punches in hopes that he's able to back Porter off at some point. Otherwise, we're going to have several nip and tuck rounds where judges will have a difficult time separating Crawford's precision from Porter's aggression.
There are going to be some dicey moments in this fight as Porter will use intelligent aggression to work his way inside, negate Crawford's reach and rough him up. But Crawford is an exceptional fighter and a brilliant counterpuncher with a nasty streak when he finds his opponent in any kind of danger. Timing will be the key and Crawford will weather the early storm to pull away in the championship rounds by finding ways to pick off Porter's advances with clean counterpunching. Don't be surprised if this is a majority or split decision for Crawford.
Sporting News prediction: Terence Crawford by decision (-115)