Crawford upbeat on landing Pacquiao fight

CEBU, Philippines – Unbeaten WBO super lightweight champion Terence Crawford is confident of getting a crack at Manny Pacquiao in what’s expected to be the Filipino icon’s last professional fight.

In an interview with Jenna J of On The Ropes Boxing, Crawford said if he ever takes on Pacquiao, it will be a passing of the torch.

“Yeah, I feel it can happen, we’ll just wait and see what happens though. I feel it’s a good fight for me at this point in time in my career. I feel like I’m ready for it and it’s just a matter of making things happen on both sides of the field,” said Crawford.

Reports said Pacquiao is eyeing to return to the ring for the last time on April 9 before dedicating his time to politics. The Sarangani congressman is gunning for a Senate post in the May 2016 elections.

Among the frontrunners to be Pacquiao final opponent are Amir Khan and Crawford, who sports a perfect record of 27-0, with 19 knockouts.

The Omaha, Nebraska-based Crawford is coming off an impressive dismantling of Dierry Jean, whom he stopped in 10 rounds last October 24 to strengthen his case for a date with Pacquiao.

Crawford, for his part, said he is ready to take over the sport.

“[Floyd] Mayweather is already retired, [Miguel] Cotto in a few is going to be retiring. [Timothy] Bradley in a few he’s going to be retiring, so it’s time for a new generation to take over boxing,” he continued.

But first, Crawford must defeat Pacquiao, which nowadays is still no easy feat. — Philippine STAR News Service