Sixth-Round TKO Keeps Terence Crawford on Track for a Dream Fight

BLK Prime has also signed the former champion Adrien Broner to a deal that the boxer said was worth eight figures.

Payouts like those usually go to proven ticket sellers and elite performers. Broner has not won a significant fight since 2015, and he showed up at Saturday’s card with a shirt-stretching belly that suggested he was far from fighting shape.

And eight-figure guarantees usually come from deep-pocketed industry veterans who have proved they can monetize those deals. BLK Prime has no previous pro sports experience, and minimal apparent media and sponsorship reach.

Where the canvas and ring posts at most major bouts are plastered with sponsors’ logos, BLK Prime was the only brand name displayed on the ring during Saturday’s card. By early Sunday morning, BLK Prime’s boxing focused Instagram account had accrued just over 8,000 followers, compared with 1.5 million for the streaming service DAZN’s boxing feed. And the company’s YouTube channel had fewer than 1,200 followers.

Still, the company’s spokesman, Sam Katkovski, insisted BLK Prime had a game plan.

“Everything is being done strategically,” he said in an interview before the fight.

Crawford showed that even after 13 months away from the ring, he could bank on his skills.

Avanesyan spent the early stages of the fight advancing behind a high guard, landing occasional looping punches as Crawford assumed an orthodox stance and probing with low-impact jabs. After Crawford switched to southpaw, he punched with more speed and intent, stabbing Avanesyan with right jabs to the stomach or whacking his rib cage with right hooks.

From there, the bout assumed a familiar rhythm: Crawford increased the intensity round by round, applying tactical, fundamentally sound pressure.

Article source: https://www.nytimes.com/2022/12/11/sports/terence-crawford-fight.html