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Jeff Horn’s reign as WBO welterweight champion has come to a crashing end at the hands of Terence Crawford, who claimed the belt with an utterly dominant display on Sunday (AEST) in Las Vegas.
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Australia’s Jeff Horn takes on America’s Terence Crawford in the second defence of his world welterweight title. Join The Roar from noon (AEST) for live fight coverage and debate in our blog.
Horn’s life changed forever when he upset Filipino legend Manny Pacquiao at Suncorp Stadium nearly twelve months ago to win the title.
Since then, he’s defended the title against lowly-ranked Englishman Gary Corcoran, stopping him in the 11th round in December last year.
Despite being the champion, Horn is a heavy underdog for this fight. Crawford is an undefeated two-time former world champion himself. Many boxing pundits regard him as the world’s best pound-for-pound boxer.
But here are three reasons why Horn will win.
1. He’ll have a size advantage over Crawford
Crawford is stepping up in weight to challenge for Horn’s title. Though he’s dominated the lightweight and super lightweight divisions, this is his first fight at welterweight.
And Horn is a big welterweight. He struggles to make the 66kg weigh-in limit 24 hours before the fight, but once he does, he packs the kilos back on. He’ll be heavier and stronger than Crawford. He’ll need to use that to his advantage like he did against Pacquiao.
2. His style is unorthodox
Horn can throw powerful punches from all angles, he’s not your classic style of boxer. If he can come out hard early and land some big shots, he could overwhelm and confuse Crawford.
The American’s decision to use the lightly-padded horse hair gloves could backfire on him.
And if there’s an accidental head clash that results in a cut, Horn needs to make sure he’s ahead on the scorecards.
He’ll have to make it a rough brawl like he did against Pacquiao, not giving the slick Crawford any room to use his sublime boxing skills.
3. He’s used to proving people wrong
Horn has been proving the doubters wrong for his entire boxing career, even stretching back to his amateur days. Some people didn’t think he had what it took to make the Olympics, but he qualified and went within one fight of winning a bronze medal in London in 2012.
And of course, he was a big underdog against Pacquiao where his incredible determination was on display for everyone to see.
On the other hand, here’s three reasons why Crawford will win.
1. His boxing skills
Crawford is an extremely talented boxer. He switches back and forth between orthodox and southpaw with ease, moves well, has great defensive skills and he’s also a devastating counterpuncher.
If Horn misses, Crawford will make him pay. He has an impressive 71% KO record, so he knows how to put opponents away.
2. Horn cuts easily
If Crawford can find his range early, he could open Horn up with the horse-hair gloves. That could mean an early stoppage.
3. Bob Arum wants him to win
Crawford is promoted by Bob Arum. He’s been one of the most influential figures in world boxing for decades.
Although Arum gave Horn his title shot against Pacquiao, he’s heavily invested in Crawford’s success.
It will be hard for Horn to get a points decision in Las Vegas if the fight goes the distance, even with one of the three judges being Australian.
Join The Roar from noon (AEST) for live fight coverage and debate in our live blog.
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