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By: Sean Crose
Terence Crawford returned to the ring for the first time in a year Saturday when he squared off against WBA junior middleweight titlist Israil Madrimov in Los Angeles. The bout, which was scheduled for twelve rounds, was the main event of a DAZN pay per view card broadcast live from LA’s BMO Stadium. Crawford was jumping up from welterweight where he was last seen dominating Errol Spence, a fighter who was widely regarded as his equal, in a legitimate superfight in 2023.
The first round was basically a feeling out process – not uncommon in Crawford fights. The second was also a tight affair, though the fighters were beginning to open up in the later portion of the round. Crawford likely took the third with a few clean shots. Madrimov, on the other hand, was patient to the point of nearly letting the round slip by. The fourth saw Madrimov come alive and land well against the fast and hard hitting Crawford.
Crawford went down from a slip in the fifth, then got tagged several times by Madrimov. The sixth was extremely close. This was one of those fights where no one had a spectacular moment – and least not so far. Madrimov continued to fight intelligently in the seventh, but it was Crawford who was landing more effectively. The fighters finally began opening fire on each other in the eighth. It was a close, frustrating fight to score.
Madrimov’s sharp shooting probably won him the ninth. The fight remained an awkward affair in the tenth. Both fighters had their moments, and it was difficult to see who was truly getting the better of who. Madrimov performed marvelously in the eleventh, so marvelously that he lost focus for a moment and got tagged hard by Crawford, who then went on to win the round. The twelfth and final round saw Crawford landing well. Madrimov landed well himself, but Crawford may have edged it.
After the final bell, the judges ruled in favor of Crawford via a close unanimous decision.
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