Terence Crawford has responded to Turki Alalshikh’s request that he comes out of retirement and enters a rematch with Canelo Alvarez.
The Saudi boxing chief spearheaded their first encounter in September, when Crawford moved up two weight divisions and claimed a career-defining unanimous decision victory.
In doing so, the American became a three-division undisputed king – and five-weight world champion – before retiring with a record of 42-0 in December.
Other than perhaps an immediate rematch with Canelo, there was little more for Crawford to achieve after proving to be the top dog at 168lbs.
Alvarez, on the other hand, is determined to reclaim one quarter of his undisputed super-middleweight crown later this year.
Standing in his way is WBC world champion Christian Mbilli, who is set to defend his title against Canelo in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, on September 12.
Like Canelo, Mbilli has not fought since last September, back when he boxed to a 10-round draw against Lester Martinez on the Canelo-Crawford undercard.
The Frenchman was then elevated from ‘interim’ to full WBC champion following Crawford’s retirement, while Alvarez has been recovering from elbow surgery.
But while Mbilli represents a solid opponent, Alalshikh suggested earlier this week that Crawford should make a retirement U-turn and rematch Canelo.
In response, the 38-year-old said in a social media video, reposted by FightHype, that he still has no desire to return to the ring.
“They still want me to come out of retirement and whoop some people. What more can I ask for, man? I’m blessed. Life is beautiful right now, and I’m enjoying every bit of it.”
Clearly, Crawford feels no urge to reignite a Hall of Fame-worthy career that saw him become one of the premiere fighters of his generation.