Errol Spence Jr has explained how a “messed up” training camp was what cost him in his undisputed showdown with Terence Crawford.
‘The Truth’ lost his WBC, IBF and WBA welterweight titles to ‘Bud’ in July 2023, suffering a ninth-round stoppage defeat in what was widely considered to be a 50/50 fight.
Since then, he has remained out of the ring, but the 36-year-old is now gearing up to face fellow former world champion Tim Tszyu on July 25.
The pair will square off in Australia at a catchweight of 158lbs, with Spence not only competing at a higher weight but also training under the tutelage of new head coach Ronnie Shields.
It seems as though a major change was needed, both in a weight-making and training-related sense, with the American hoping that Shields can guide him towards his first victory since April 2022, back when he scored a 10th-round finish over Yordenis Ugas.
Or at least, Spence is surely confident that his preparations for Tszyu will be more straightforward than they were for Crawford, whose switch-hitting style must be a nightmare to replicate in sparring.
In fact, the former unified champion has told All The Smoke Boxing that esteemed former coach Derrick James failed to arrange the proper sparring partners.
“Nope [no conversations with Derrick James about how to go about the fight]. That camp was bulls**t. I did no sparring. The guys didn’t fit – I had no southpaws in there to spar. It was all out of whack.
I was basically living wrong. Even out of camp, you’ve got to live right so, once you get in camp, everything [is] cool.
Derrick’s [job to pick the sparring partners], he’s the teacher right? We were just working the mitts. You would think he would put on some gloves and have me blocking shots, but it was none of that.
I was just feeling weak, depleted. Even if I worked out, I feel like I wasn’t getting stronger. The whole camp – it was just a whole messed up situation.”
Clearly, Spence also blames himself for not turning up in the best of shape, yet no credit should be taken away from one of Crawford’s career-defining performances.