Israil Madrimov praises Terence Crawford ahead of WBA super-welterweight title defence
Israil Madrimov has warned Terence Crawford that he has bitten off more than he can chew ahead of their hugely-anticipated clash for the WBA and WBO interim Super-Welterweight World Titles at the top of this Saturday’s unmissable Riyadh Season Card at BMO Stadium in Los Angeles, live worldwide on DAZN PPV.
‘The Dream’ (10-0-1, 7 KOs) makes the first defence of his WBA crown against the toughest opposition possible after winning the belt in spectacular fashion in his last outing on the undercard of Anthony Joshua’s brutal KO win over Francis Ngannou in Saudi Arabia earlier this year.
The Uzbek star took on Magomed Kurbanov for the vacant title and stopped the Russian in five rounds with a dominant performance to continue his impressive unbeaten run in the paid ranks, following a glittering amateur career.
Pound-for-pound star Crawford is attempting to create even more history as he bids to win a World Title in a fourth weight category after cleaning up at Lightweight, Super-Lightweight and Welterweight, but Madrimov is convinced that he is the man to shock the world and inflict a first career defeat on ‘Bud’.
“My dream has always been to fight the best boxers and the pound-for-pound boxers,” said Madrimov. “When I received the news that I would be making my first World Title defence against Terence Crawford I was very happy; let’s go! I am ready all of the time.
“I have always been a fan of Terence Crawford. I like his style. He has great movement. It’s a good style. It is true that he is one of my favourite boxers. There is always a first guy, and I want to be the first guy to beat him and to break all of the records.
“He doesn’t have any weaknesses. I haven’t seen any of those, but I will try to discover some. I am very excited to get this opportunity to make a statement, and I will Inshallah. I’m not Errol Spence Jr. I am Israil Madrimov. This is my division.
“He’s moving up in weight. I’m the World Champion here, and I don’t think about him. I think about myself and I think about accomplishing my goals and winning this fight. It’s a huge honour and opportunity for me to show my skills and I want to win this fight in style. And still!”
Crawford vs. Madrimov tops a blockbuster Los Angeles Riyadh Season Card this weekend, as Mexico’s Isaac ‘Pitbull’ Cruz (26-2-1, 18 KOs) defends his WBA Super-Lightweight World Title against Jose Valenzuela (13-2, 9 KOs) in the chief supporting fight.
Former Unified Heavyweight World Champion Andy Ruiz Jr. (35-2, 22 KOs) returns against New York’s Jarrell ‘Big Baby’ Miller (26-1-1, 22 KOs), undefeated Heavyweight contender Jared Anderson (17-0, 15 KOs) collides with Martin Bakole (20-1, 15 KOs) in a an explosive match-up for the NABF and WBO International Titles.
Cuba’s David Morrell (10-0, 9 KOs) defends his WBA Light-Heavyweight World Title against Radivoje ‘Hot Rod’ Kalajdzic (29-2, 21 KOs), Olympic Lightweight Champion Andy Cruz (3-0, 1 KO) continues his 135lbs campaign when he takes on Mexico’s Antonio Moran (30-6-1, 21 KOs) with the IBF International and WBA Continental Latin-American Titles on the line.
Unbeaten Super-Middleweights Steve Nelson (19-0, 15 KOs) and Marcos Ramon Vazquez (20-0-1, 10 KOs) meet over ten rounds and Saudi Arabian Welterweight talent Ziyad Almaayouf (5-0, 1 KO) fights in the US for the first time against Poland’s Michal Bulik (6-7, 2 KOs).