Former undisputed super welterweight champion Jermell Charlo has called out super middleweight king Terence Crawford as he eyes a return after more than two years out of the ring.
Charlo says he doesn’t see any other fights that Crawford can make other than against himself, claiming he would “give him the best fight of today’s era”.
"It’s going to be an honour to get in the ring with him because of what he has done in there,” Charlo explained to The Ring. “Becoming undisputed [against Canelo Alvarez], he completed something that I didn’t complete, so being in the ring with Crawford would be amazing.
“I’d give him the best fight of today’s era. I don’t think there are any other fights out there for Crawford to make.”
Crawford’s next move is uncertain, but he could vacate his super middleweight titles and move down to middleweight to chase a world title in a sixth division.
“I’m going to sit down with my team,” Crawford said after his legacy-defining win over Canelo last month. “We are going to discuss what is next in the future for Terence Crawford. Who knows? I might go down to 160lbs.”
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Charlo has not fought since he attempted greatness, competing for Canelo Alvarez’s undisputed super middleweight titles in 2023, which saw him dropped in the seventh round on the way to a lopsided points defeat.
Before this, he became the undisputed super welterweight champion by defeating Brian Castano at the second time of asking, following a draw in their first meeting.
Domination at 154lbs is clearly still the goal for Charlo as he also sets his sights on some of the other elite-level contenders in the division, including recent arrival and apparent world champion in waiting, Jaron ‘Boots’ Ennis.
“The best fight for ‘Boots’ is me," Charlo added. "The best fight with Crawford is me. Errol [Spence] and Vergil [Ortiz], the winner of them [Ortiz vs Erickson Lubin], but I don’t really see anyone else."
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