Errol Spence Jr and Terence Crawford left their press-conference crowd in laughter on Wednesday, as they bickered over a ‘fishing’ analogy.
Spence Jr has a ‘big fish’ tattoo and has referred to himself as a shark throughout his career, something that Crawford tapped into during the second press conference for their long-awaited 29 July bout.
Crawford, 35, said on Wednesday (14 June): “I like to go fishing, everybody knows those are my hobbies. They’ve all been caught before, every last [opponent], and 29 July he’s gonna be caught, too. I’ve got a big enough hook for him, and I’m already reeling him in. I’m gonna put him on the bank, I’m gonna gut him, and I’m gonna filet him.”
Spence Jr, 33, replied: “Man, that’s [nonsense], he’s not catching me with no fishing pole. I’m the biggest. What would it look like catching Moby Dick with a fishing pole? Your a** better have a submarine.”
As the crowd laughed, Crawford continued: “We’re gonna catch him. Matter of fact, we already caught him; we’re just reeling him in right now. And 29 July, that’s when we’re gonna get him to the bay. Probably weigh him, put him on the scale, chop his head off, cut him from the gut – from the little butt up.”
Spence Jr told his fellow American, “You ain’t got a scale big enough,” but Crawford pressed on, saying: “Take the little vice grips, pull the skin off, take the little knife.”
As Crawford mimicked the sound of a knife slicing through a fish, Spence said: “You don’t need the sounds.”
Spence Jr vs Crawford is one of the most-anticipated boxing matches in years, with both Americans entering the welterweight title fight with unbeaten records.
Spence Jr (28-0, 22 knockouts) will carry the WBC, WBA and IBF titles into the bout, while Crawford (39-0, 30 KOs) is the WBO champion. The winner, provided there is no draw, will leave Las Vegas as undisputed welterweight champion.
Click here to subscribe to The Independent’s Sport YouTube channel for all the latest sports videos.
