The current WBO welterweight champion Terence “Bud” Crawford will take on British boxing star Amir “King” Khan in a battle for welterweight supremacy on Top Rank’s first ESPN PPV of 2019.
According to ESPN bought will take place on April 20, 2019, with a venue still to be decided. This will be a can’t miss fight between two of boxing’s most exciting fighters.
Crawford (34-0, 25 KOs) is undefeated and widely considered pound-for-pound king in boxing, but he still has a long way to go in the welterweight division and Khan is his marquee opponent that will help build up his fan following.
What put Crawford atop of the pound-for-pound rankings was his dominant run at 140-pounds. At junior welterweight he unified all four 140-pound titles (IBF, WBA, WBC, WBO), with a third-round knockout against Julius Indongo on August 19, 2017 on ESPN.
Crawford vacated his titles and moved up to welterweight to challenge Australian champion Jeff Horn. In the Horn fight Crawford stopped the formerly undefeated WBO champion, a feat not even the great Manny Pacquiao could achieve when he fought and lost to Horn in Brisbane.
He made his first title defense against Jose Benavidez Jr and stopped him in the 12th round of an action packed fight.
Khan (33-4, 20 KOs) is one of the fastest boxers in the sport and has a huge fan following. He is a former junior welterweight world champion looking to add a welterweight belt to his resume and become a two division world champion.
He just announced this week that he will reunite with trainer Virgil Hunter and train with him in California for this fight.
He previously went with Joe Goossen for his last two bouts because Hunter fell ill, now that Virgil is better Khan felt it was only right to return to his former trainer who helped improve his counter punching abilities.
The Crawford vs. Khan PPV will be broadcast in the United States by ESPN, promoted by Top Rank, in association with Matchroom Boxing and Khan promotions.
Terence Crawford and Amir Khan LIVE on ESPN PPV April 20 at 9 p.m. ET/6 p.m. PT
