A SHOT AT THE TITLE
Crawford survived gun attack as a kid – but while his wild days are over he still feels he has plenty to prove in the ring
BY DAVID ANDERSON TERENCE CRAWFORD is so tough not even a bullet can stop him.
Crawford was shot in the head 11 years ago in his home city of Omaha, Nebraska, in America’s Midwest as he sat in his car, counting his winnings from shooting dice in the street.
The bullet hit him on the right side of his head, just below his ear, and could easily have killed him if its trajectory had not altered as it passed through the rear windscreen.
Crawford did not panic and drove himself to hospital, bleeding from his wound, even calling his mum Deborah and trainer Brian McIntyre en route to tell them what happened.
Fortunately his injuries were not serious and he was stitched up and discharged.
Incredibly, he was back in the ring two months later, recording the fifth win of his perfect 34-0 professional career that has brought him six world titles at three weights.
Crawford, 20 at the time, has moved on from that night in 2008 and shut down any reference to it at his media work-out in Manhattan head of Saturday’s fight with Amir Khan.
But the experience did change him and he ditched his tearaway behaviour to dedicate himself to boxing.
Crawford said: “I’m a man now, who has a lot going for him. I’m proud of where I am now and I’ve worked very hard to get here.”
His win over Ricky Burns in Glasgow in 2014 to claim the WBO lightweight title was the launchpad. He’s reeled off 11 world title wins since, sweeping all before him at lightweight, light-welterweight and now welterweight.
He is still rising and wants IBF champ Errol Spence Junior after facing Khan at Madison Square Garden as the next step in his goal to cleaning up at 147lbs. But there are also poundfor-pound rankings and it irks Crawford some pundits place his Top Rank stable-mate Vasyl Lomachenko ahead of him.
The slick switch-hitter said: “My first goal was to become world champion and I did that against Burns at 135. Once I conquered that, I set myself another goal and another goal.
“Next I want to become the undisputed welterweight champion of the world, then No.1 pound-for-pound in the world. I should be No.1 in those rankings, not No.2. I just want to keep being successful.”
Crawford, 31, is proud to be an inspiration for youngsters and while he has changed from the wild kid who was shot, he is still humble.
He added: “You’ve got to remember where you come from. And when all the fighting stops and everybody stops shouting your name, you’ve still got to be yourself and I feel I am.”