Saturday night at Mandalay Bay in Las Vegas, Nevada, WBO welterweight champion Terence “Bud” Crawford (38-0, 29 KOs) finally silenced his critics by stopping his toughest challenger yet, two-time welterweight champion Shawn Porter (31-4-1, 17 KOs), dropping him twice and forcing a TKO at 1:21 of round 10.

 

It was Crawford’s fifth defense of the title he won in 2018 and his finest performance yet. He may or may not be the greatest fighter alive, there’s a redhead down in Mexico who’s in the running, but Crawford’s boxing IQ is off the charts. Those who have followed his career were well aware of his exceptional talent, especially when it came to analyzing an opponent before lowering the boom. But Bud’s laidback personality, his so-so opposition, and his Top Rank affiliation has stymied the recognition he deserves.

 

Perhaps Saturday’s fight will change all that.

 

Porter was ahead on the scorecards after five rounds. Crawford took control in the sixth and slowly broke Shawn Porter down. After the knockdowns, Shawn's father and trainer, Kenny Porter, stopped the fight. It was a gutsy, heart-wrenching loss for Porter, a masterful win for Crawford.

 

After the fight, Crawford said, “I figured that I had the reach and he had to take chances, and he did what he normally does. He tried to maul and push me back, but I used my angles and I pushed him back at times as well. Shawn Porter is a slick fighter. He was doing some things in there and made me think.

 

“Shawn Porter is a real good friend of mine. I didn’t really want to fight him. We always said we would fight each other when the time was right and I guess the time was right for this fight to happen. I tried to fight the other champions in the division and that didn’t happen, so I went to the next best thing. Shawn Porter, I can’t say nothing bad about him.”

 

The feeling is mutual.

 

“He’s doing what he know he needs to do,” said Porter. “My timing was off and he wouldn’t allow me to get my rhythm. He’s the best out of everybody I have been in the ring with. He was on point A to Z and he was that good that I would want to do it again. He’s got it, inside and outside the ring.”

 

Then Porter dropped a bombshell.

 

“After you’ve fought everybody at the top, what more do you do? I’m not gonna be a gatekeeper,” he said.

 

“I’m prepared to retire, was prepared to announce my retirement tonight, win, lose or draw,” he said. “If it was a draw, they had a date they were telling us we were going to do it again, but I was not gonna do it again. I’m announcing my retirement right now.”

 

Not to be outdone, Crawford dropped a bombshell of his own. He announced that he’s leaving Top Rank.

 

“My decision is made already,” he said. “Bob couldn’t secure me the Spence fight when I was with him, so how’s he going to secure me the Spence fight when I’m not with him? I’m moving forward with my career right now and wish everybody the best.”