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Shawn Porter reveals plan to beat familiar foe Terence Crawford

Shawn Porter

"I don't want you to be comfortable in the ring, and I'm willing to do whatever it takes to make you uncomfortable."

Shawn Porter has opened up on his detailed plan to strip Terence Crawford of his WBO welterweight world title in Las Vegas on Saturday night.

After stopping two Brits - Amir Khan and Kell Brook - in two of his last three fights Crawford will arrive in Las Vegas as the heavy 1/6 favourite.

Floored in the opening round of the April 2019 clash, Khan took a low shot in the sixth round and his corner pulled him out.

The Brit was heavily criticised but afterwards he immediately confirmed: "I was hit with a low shot, man. I was hit with a very low blow."

Crawford was leading 49-45, 50-44, 49-45 on the cards at the time of the stoppage and so a TKO was awarded to the American.

His win over Brook in November 2020 was much more clear cut with the referee stepping in to stop the fight in the fourth round.
Those two fights have been the pinnacle for Crawford to date, but the weekend's match up with Porter will be the biggest and hardest of his career.
Porter's welterweight CV is impressive. He has disposed of the likes of Danny Garcia, Adrien Broner, and current WBA belt holder Yordenis Ugas. While he lost on a split decision to Errol Spence Jnr and was beaten by Brook in 2016 by a majority decision.
Good friends out of the ring, Porter is confident he can upset the odds. And at 9/2 with Planet Sport Bet he offers decent value of getting one over his old sparring partner.

Porter is adamant he will make Crawford (37-0, 28 KOs) uncomfortable in the ring and try and disrupt the Nebraska man's rhythm.

"In the ring with me, he's [Crawford] not going to have his way.

"He's not going to be able to be comfortable in the way that others have allowed him to be comfortable. That's how you get him uncomfortable," Porter told Top Rank Boxing.

"That's how you get under his skin," said Porter. "You make the moves and do all the necessary things to make him feel like all the things that they're telling you that, 'You're not that good that this is the big test,' now the test is coming, and we'll see what happens.
"I do believe that nobody has forced him [Crawford] to get out of his comfort zone and forced him to do anything other than what he wants to do," said Porter.
"I think he's a very intellectual boxer, and I think he can, during the course of the rounds to figure out what a guy does and take that away from them. Thirty-seven times, he's gotten his way, and this is the one time that he's not going to be able to get his way.

"I have multiple styles, I have a lot in my arsenal, and he's going to see it all. I think the word that I'm going to pull out is extraordinary," said Porter.

"I think there are some things I do that are extraordinary. The pivots that I have, the speed that I have that comes with the power that I have, and the strength that I have. I think that's a combination along with itself, and then you add my boxing IQ."

Timing

Porter has the chance to become a three-time welterweight world champion having previously held the IBF and WBC titles.

He has two defeats on his professional record, losing to Kell Brook and more recently Errol Spence Jr - although he has picked up wins against Danny Garcia and Yordenis Ugas, the latter retired Manny Pacquiao this summer.

"I don't want you to be comfortable in the ring, and I'm willing to do whatever it takes to make you uncomfortable. We got a great fight on our hands," said Porter.

"I think it's timing," said Porter. "I think he [Crawford] gets into a rhythm and timing that fits him and what he likes to do.

"I'm not going to tell you how I'm going to disrupt that timing, but I feel like me winning this fight relies on my disrupting his timing," said Porter. Every experience has got me to the next fight.
"There are some things that I've gone through against Keith Thurman that really did show up in my fight against Errol Spence Jr. Those were almost two or three years apart those fights are.
"So, getting in the ring with Terence Crawford, I do really believe that I've seen it all live. He hasn't seen anybody like me in the moment when the heat is going, and the bullets and the gloves are flying, and that's when the adjustments need to be made. We'll see what happens."
Porter (31-3-1, 17 KOs) will undoubtedly look to fight inside against the counter-punching Crawford.

Crawford's ring mobility will be key and if he can work space for his counters and get good combinations together then Porter will struggle. It will be an interesting tactical battle from the two 34-year-old's, with Porter's best chance at glory to try and bully his opponent up close.

Porter has not knocked anyone out since his 2017 win over Andre Berto, but he does have the power to trouble Crawford. And he says a knockout is a distinct possibility.

"So, yes, believe me when I say that I've been in the gym training to knock out not just Terence Crawford, but everybody I fought.

"At the highest level, it's very difficult to do, but if it can be done, I'm going to go out there and do everything that is required. I'm not touching nerves," said Porter.

'The loudest person is always the softest'

Crawford though will remain cool and has vowed to do his talking in the ring at the Mandalay Bay.
"The loudest person in the room is always the softest person in the room," said Terence Crawford to Top Rank Boxing. "So if I look at you and say in a polite way, 'I'm going to beat your a**.'
"I'm looking at you straight in your eyes, 'I'm going to beat your a***' because I'm sending direct message to you, and you know it's real.
"I think that's more meaningful than, 'Oh, I'm going to beat your a**. I'm going to do this to you; I'm going to do that to you.'
"Because if you're yelling, I'm like, 'Why are you yelling for? I'm right here. Why are you doing all that extra stuff? You're trying to impress somebody. You want some attention, don't you?
"I'm the kind of person that tells you, 'Let's go in the back where nobody is around. Let's see who comes out.' That's me," said Crawford.

Read more: Shawn Porter: Five-fight form guide ahead of his welterweight showdown with Terence Crawford

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