LAS VEGAS -- They said he couldn't do it until he did it -- again.
Terence Crawford proved that size didn't matter, putting together a master class to defeat Canelo Alvarez by unanimous decision and become the new undisputed super middleweight champion Saturday night at Allegiant Stadium. The judges scored it 116-112, 115-113 and 115-113.
With the win, Crawford (42-0, 31 KOs) became the first male boxer in the four-belt era to be undisputed champ in three weight classes. And he did it with style in front of an announced crowd of 70,482 in the stadium -- most of whom were Alvarez fans -- and millions more who streamed the fight live on Netflix.
After capturing world titles in four weight classes -- including achieving undisputed status at junior welterweight and welterweight -- Crawford, who turns 38 in two weeks, made the audacious jump from 154 pounds to 168 pounds to dethrone boxing's biggest star.
"I told y'all I'm not here just by a coincidence. God blessed me," Crawford said. "He made this event, and he made this night just for me. And I've been telling y'all that. It's not my fault. It's God's."
Despite the close scorecards, it felt as if Crawford won by a wider margin as he routinely stymied Alvarez (63-3-2, 39 KOs) and left the Mexican star looking as lost as he did when he lost to Floyd Mayweather Jr. in 2013, when he couldn't impose his will on his allegedly smaller opponent. Alvarez, 35, has improved significantly since then, but Crawford was simply a better fighter who was always one or two steps ahead.
Crawford outlanded Alvarez 115-99 in total punches and 45-16 in jabs. He outworked Alvarez when it counted most, with the most telling moment happening in the 11th round when a simple jab landed by Crawford forced Alvarez to step back and shake his head in disbelief.
The size difference dominated the conversation heading into the fight, and even though both fighters weighed in at 167.5 pounds on Friday, the expectation was that Alvarez's power and strength would overwhelm Crawford.
That didn't happen.
"I'm a winner for being here," said Alvarez, who entered the fight 10-0 at super middleweight and a winner of six consecutive fights, with his only loss over the past 10 years coming at the hands of Dmitry Bivol when he attempted to capture a world title at light heavyweight.
But against a fighter coming up in weight, he struggled to mount significant offense and was muscled around by Crawford late in the fight.
"There's no defeat here," he continued. "The fact that I'm here makes me already a winner. I've done everything in my career. I've come to actually take risks and that's what I did. I take risks."
But it was Crawford who took the biggest risk by climbing up to 168 pounds when just about everyone, even his opponent, said it was too much to overcome.
The performance was on par with Crawford's 2023 demolition of Errol Spence Jr. to become the undisputed welterweight champion. While not as violent, it was about as perfect as it could be against one of the best fighters of this era.
Fighting out of Omaha, Nebraska, Crawford utilized movement early to keep Alvarez off balance, kept an active jab and picked his spots with hard combinations throughout the 36-minute affair. Crawford was dialed in from the start as Alvarez sought to corner his opponent. But Crawford's movement prevented Alvarez from rumbling inside and landing his thudding power shots. Instead, he found himself on the receiving end of Crawford's combination punching. Crawford began to pick up the pace in Round 4 as he began stringing together punches and escaping danger.
The fighting pride of Guadalajara, Mexico, Alvarez did have success going to the body in hopes of slowing Crawford down. However, Crawford's movement prevented Alvarez from setting his feet and cutting loose meaningful combinations. By Round 7, Crawford decided to sit in the pocket and exchange with Alvarez, which appeared to catch him off guard. Alvarez began to visibly wear the frustration on his face when Crawford would bounce combinations off his head and slip away.
Crawford didn't rest on a perceived lead and went to work in the championship rounds, soundly beating Alvarez to the punch. Many fans headed for the exits before the decision was announced.
For those who remained and heavily jeered Crawford, those boos turned to appreciative cheers for the boxing brilliance of Omaha's finest. There might not be much left for Crawford to do in his career, but he declined to commit to retirement.
"I don't know," Crawford said when asked if this would be his last fight. "I have to sit down with my team, and we're gonna talk about it."
If this is the last time Crawford steps into a boxing ring, a serious conversation must be had regarding his place among the greatest boxers of all time.