Terence Crawford dominates, stops Errol Spence in nine rounds to become undisputed welterweight champion

LAS VEGAS -- Terence Crawford stands alone.

Undisputed welterweight world champion.

The first-ever male two-time undisputed world champion in the four-belt era.

The pound-for-pound best.

And king of his generation.

Terence Crawford's sensational victory, crowning him as the undisputed welterweight champion, has sent shockwaves through the boxing world, leaving betting enthusiasts intrigued by the potential betting opportunities in future matchups. With a record of 40-0 and 31 knockouts, Crawford's dominance in the ring has positioned him as a formidable force in the welterweight division.

Sportsbooks are already adjusting their odds to reflect Crawford's new status as the undisputed champion, and bettors can expect exciting options for future fights you could try here. The possibility of a rematch with Errol Spence Jr, who showed resilience despite the loss, has sparked speculation about potential betting markets and odds for a second clash between these elite fighters.

As the boxing community eagerly anticipates Crawford's next opponent, bettors are keeping a close eye on potential challengers and evaluating betting strategies to capitalize on the welterweight champion's future matchups. The emergence of Isaac 'Pitbull' Cruz as a victor in the co-main event adds another layer of interest for betting enthusiasts, offering new avenues to explore in the lightweight division.

Overall, Crawford's triumphant performance has ignited a surge of excitement in the betting arena, presenting opportunities for bettors to make informed wagers and celebrate the sport's finest moments with winning bets.

Crawford dominated Errol Spence Jr., dropped him three times, and knocked out the previously undefeated former champion in the ninth round of a Showtime Pay-Per-View main event before an announced crowd of 19,990 at T-Mobile Arena. Referee Harvey Dock stopped their scheduled 12-round, 147-pound title unification fight at 2:32, as Crawford battered a bloodied, badly wounded Spence with an assortment of power punches that had him wobbling all over the ring.

The massively anticipated fight, more than six years in the making, became a major event. Unlike superfights in the past, it was the drama-filled battle many had hoped for. However, it was one-way traffic as Crawford, the master boxer, took control of the fight from the second round on.

Crawford, who entered the fight as the WBO welterweight world champion and had called Spence to fight since 2018, accomplished what he had said he would do all along.

"Like I said before, I only dreamed of being a world champion," said Crawford. "I'm an overachiever. Nobody believed in me when I was coming up, but I made everybody a believer."

Crawford (40-0, 31 KOs), who is nicknamed "Bud," traveled to Scotland in 2014 to win his first world title, outboxing Ricky Burns over 12 rounds to capture the WBO lightweight crown. He went on to win the undisputed championship at 140 pounds and is now the first man to capture all four belts at 147 pounds, long considered one of boxing's glamour divisions.

"It means everything because of who I took the belts from," added Crawford, who was accompanied by music sensation Eminem and his hit song "Lose Yourself" as he entered the ring for the most significant bout of his 16-year career.

Crawford came out southpaw in the opening round and connected with the fight's first punch, a right jab. With 1:13 remaining in the round, Spence landed with a left hand to the body and dictated the pace down the stretch with his southpaw jab, one of the best in boxing. Crawford, however, connected with a counter left hand with about 27 seconds left.

Spence landed with a hard right jab with one minute left in round two. Crawford drilled Spence with a counter right that sent him to the canvas with 20 seconds to go. Spence beat the count but appeared to be badly hurt.

Crawford dominated Spence late in the third round behind his jab. With 35 seconds remaining, he backed up Spence with the shot and did so again 15 seconds later.

In the fourth, Crawford landed with a hard left hand that knocked Spence off balance. He continued to walk down Spence as they went down the stretch and busted open his nose.

Spence connected with some hard right hands to the body in round five. Crawford, though, continued to march forward, landing head-body combinations. Spence was cut around his left eye with less than a minute left. Despite the blood, he nailed Crawford with a hard left hand with 20 seconds remaining in the frame.

Spence was forced to clinch after Crawford cracked him with a huge left hand in the sixth. Crawford continued to find success with the left as the round progressed, connecting with another clean shot with 1:15 to go. With 18 seconds remaining, Crawford rocked Spence with a right-left-left combination that knocked him back on his feet.

A counter right hook from Crawford sent Spence to the canvas for the second time in the bout with just under two minutes left in the seventh round. Spence beat the count again, but appeared to be confused by what Crawford caught him with. With one second to go, Crawford floored Spence for the second time in the round and for the third time in the fight with a counter right uppercut followed by a right cross that put Spence on his trunks.

Crawford seemingly took a breather in the eighth before he decimated his longtime rival in the following round.

The Compubox statistics were also indicative of just how dominant Crawford was. The Omaha, Nebraska native connected with an astounding 60% of his power punches. Overall, Crawford landed 185 of 369 punches (50%) and Spence connected with 96 of 480 punches (20%).

Cruz wins in unimpressive performance

In the co-main event, Isaac "Pitbull" Cruz (25-2-1, 17 KOs) escaped with a 12-round split decision over previously unbeaten Giovanni Cabrera (21-1, 7 KOs).

The scores were 114-113 for Cabrera, 114-113 for Cruz, and 115-112 for Cruz.

In round five, Cruz rocked Cabrera with a short right uppercut and a left hook. However, he was warned by referee Thomas Taylor for using his head on the inside.

With a minute remaining in the seventh, Cruz countered Cabrera with a left hook, but the latter took it well.

Cruz was docked a point in the eighth round for using his head, a costly move as he was winning the round.

SANTIAGO UPSETS DONAIRE, WINS FIRST WORLD TITLE

Alex Santiago defeated Nonito Donaire via 12-round unanimous decision to win the vacant WBC bantamweight world title.

Judge Max DeLuca scored the fight 115-113, and judges Chris Migliore and Steve Weisfeld both had it 116-112. FightNights.com also scored the bout 116-112.

Donaire hurt Santiago with a left hook in the third round. Santiago was cut on the forehead down the stretch of the round as the front of his white hair turned red.

In the fourth, Donaire connected with a left uppercut and controlled the range with the jab.

Santiago suffered a cut around his left eye in the seventh round after both fighters came together during an exchange. However, it was at this point when Santiago began to take control of the action.

In the eighth, Santiago connected with a right uppercut and dictated the pace. Towards the end of the round, he walked down Donaire and landed with a right.

Donaire showed all of his 40 years in the ninth round as Santiago punished him throughout. In the closing moments, he connected with lefts and rights to the body and the head with Donaire against the ropes.

Santiago continued to beat Donaire down the stretch as the former four-division world champion appeared ready to take a knee at the end of round 11.

Donaire shook off the retirement question from Showtime's Jim Gray after the fight, stating that he and his team would go back to the drawing board to weigh their next options.

For Santiago, he won his first world title in his second attempt. In his first shot, Santiago fought former junior bantamweight titleholder Jerwin Ancajas to a 12-round draw in September 2018.

TELLEZ STOPS GARCIA

Junior middleweight Yoenis Tellez (5-0, 4 KOs) became the first man to knock out Sergio Garcia (34-2, 14 KOs) as he got the job done in the third round.

At 1:30 of round three, Tellez hurt Garcia with a hard right hand over the top and followed up with another right that dropped him hard to the canvas. Moments later, Tellez finished him off to secure the TKO win.

Rounding out the undercard, Steven Nelson outpointed Rowdy Legend over 10 rounds in a super middleweight bout.

Jose Salas Reyes scored a fourth-round TKO victory over Aston Palicte after the latter was dropped and subsequently told referee Allen Huggins he did not want to continue.

Jabin Chollet (8-0, 7 KOs) scored a second-round TKO against Michael Portales.

Demler Zamora (12-0, 9 KOs) blanked Nikolai Buzolin (9-5-1, 5 KOs) over eight rounds in a unanimous decision.

Deshawn Prather (16-1, 2 KOs) knocked down Kevin Ventura (11-1, 8 KOs) en route to a close, six-round unanimous decision victory.

Unbeaten junior lightweight Justin Viloria (3-0, 2 KOs) remained undefeated with a fourth-round TKO of previously unbeaten Pedro Penunuri Borgaro (5-1, 3 KOs).