Terence Crawford‘s potential next move looks set to be an interesting one.
Crawford cemented his place as one of the greatest fighters in recent memory when he stepped up to super-middleweight and dethroned undisputed king Canelo Alvarez at the Allegiant Stadium in Las Vegas on September 13.
It saw ‘Bud’ become the first male fighter in history to claim undisputed status in three separate weight classes, having also done so at super-lightweight and welterweight, while the American has earned world honours at 135lbs and 154lbs too.
One division that Crawford has never competed in though is middleweight, having leapfrogged 160lbs when he moved up from super-welterweight to face Canelo.
It seems that could be about to change, as ‘Bud’ has been linked to a showdown with current unified middleweight world champion Janibek Alimkhanuly, saying he has his ‘eyes on’ the Kazakh fighter.
A post on social media showed the two fighters stood together, and many fans were shocked at the size difference.
I didn’t realize Janibek was that much bigger than Bud Crawford 🥶 pic.twitter.com/mkfc91zBtC
— BISHOP BOXING OPINION📌 (@BishopBoxing) November 11, 2025
One fan commented “Geeesh. Much bigger. Going be a tough scrap” – while another said “I will never bet against Bud again but Janibek will 100% be the toughest fight of Bud’s career. Major respect if Bud makes it happen cause Janibek has nowhere near the commercial that Canelo has.”
Janibek currently holds the IBF and WBO middleweight titles, and will look to add another belt to his collection when he faces WBA champion Erislandy Lara at the Frost Bank Center in San Antonio, Texas on December 6, where a victory could seemingly lead to a showdown with Crawford next year.