While MMA stars like Conor McGregor, Francis Ngannou, and Nate Diaz have taken the plunge into boxing, no major pugilist has yet taken the leap of faith. And honestly? There’s a good reason for that. A) Where’s the money in MMA? B) Boxers don’t enjoy being kicked. And this is precisely what WBO welterweight champion Terence ‘Bud’ Crawford is talking about.
Towards the tail end of last year, McGregor had claimed to have Crawford in his sight for a crossover clash. But even with his more-than-modest wrestling prowess, ‘Bud’ isn’t entertaining the idea for a second.
In an interview with Bernie Tha Boxer, Crawford confirmed McGregor’s story about a two-fight deal being pitched, with one bout in MMA and the other in boxing, backed by Saudi Arabia’s Turki Alalshikh. But “Hell no!” is what he told the Irishman after being pitched the idea.
“They called me, offered the fight, and when me and Conor got on the phone, I told him, ‘I’m not getting in no f**king octagon so you can be kicking me and elbowing me'”, Crawford said, laughing.
As he sat across from UFC legends Kamaru Usman and Henry Cejudo on their podcast, ‘Bud’ reiterated the sentiment and said, “Don’t kick me man. Conor don’t kick me man.”
McGregor is said to have respected the honesty, noting that he appreciated that the 41-0 boxer respected the sport.
Earlier, ‘Bud’ had admitted the money would’ve been huge, but asserted that it wasn’t always about the cash and no amount of it was good enough to be getting kicked anyway.
Besides, Crawford doesn’t see eye-to-eye with UFC boss Dana White on how the promotion pays its talents, to the point where he finds it laughable.
But it’s not all bad that he sees this side of town. There is one aspect of the UFC and its fans that he values, which he feels boxing fans didn’t afford 50-0 fighter Floyd Mayweather.
Crawford praises the UFC fans for their loyalty
According to Crawford, the obsession with staying undefeated in boxing has gotten out of hand, especially since Mayweather retired 50-0.
“Floyd set the bar so high, now everybody’s trying to protect that 0”, Crawford said. He explained that in 2025, even one loss can derail your whole career. “You lose, and people act like you’re a bum. It’s crazy”, he claims.
He noted that there was a sharp contrast to this in the UFC, where once fans took a shine to someone, they were ride or die.
“One thing I love about UFC is that a guy can lose and still be supported,” he said.
Crawford also missed the days of trilogies and rematches.
“Back then, guys fought two, three times. I beat him, he beat me. Now, you lose once, and it’s like your shine is gone”, he bemoans.
Crawford’s flawless record is nine shy of Mayweather’s at this point, but the biggest threat to it might only be a few months away. ‘Bud’ is currently sitting on Canelo, trying to win the William Scull fight.
Should he be successful, the Mexican will be in possession of the IBF Super Middleweight title to go with his WBA, WBC, and WBO belts, making him the undisputed champion.
Then, Crawford and he can duke it out on September 13 at the Allegiant Stadium in Las Vegas for a scrap years in the making.
