Terence Crawford faces more questions over his ongoing glove controversy after opponent David Avanesyan posted reported images of the tools involved.
If the photos are verified to be Crawford’s apparel from the fight, the aged and wilted mittens need to face further scrutiny.
The Everlast gloves used seem to be older than their time, judging by comments made, even from boxing greats like Lennox Lewis.
For now, it looks like a storm in a teacup, and only certain sections of the YouTube boxing brigade are outraged. The gloves manufacturers, who took full responsibility, have concluded an investigation.
Terence Crawford’s gloves
“Everlast follows proper protocol by providing backup competition pairs to be replaced pending a decision by the sanctioning body overseeing the fight.
“A stoppage was called to review the equipment malfunction. The commission deemed the equipment was still suitable for competition.
“No foul play was at hand. Nor was there any tampering of the product on behalf of Terence Crawford and his camp,” they said in a statement.
That’s good enough for a lot of people. However, the man who had to be hit by those gloves is not on board with the explanation.
Avanesyan has re-posted many times on social media. He shared what he believes are images and videos of the equipment in question from the WBO welterweight title contest. The Russian fighter wants answers as to how they passed the inspection.
Responses either back Avanesyan’s claims or state the images used are not the gloves Crawford wore. Those images will need some verification if they are used in some grievance by the former European welterweight champion.
Bud is in the clear with many boxing fans over the December 10 clash. Even if he’s not with the conspiracy theorists who pound the ground.
Tyson Fury faced similar arguments after his rematch win over Deontay Wilder.
Both men won via a mid-round TKO and faced a barrage of YouTube scrutiny afterward.
PPV success
Meanwhile, Crawford vs Avanesyan as a debut for BLK Prime was a resounding success. A statement by the new Pay Per View players made sure everyone was aware of that.
According to the organizers, pre-fight hopes for the sales of the Omaha, Nebraska event went above and beyond.
“Early reports indicate that buys for the sold-out event exceeded initial projections on BLK Prime PPV digital,” stated BLK Prime.
“This further solidifies BLK Prime’s position as the newest and best destination for high-quality boxing content.”
Free agent
Crawford remains a free agent when it comes to handling his career. The next step should be to nail down the winner of the WBA, WBC, and IBF clash featuring Errol Spence and Keith Thurman.
Wins over Amir Khan, Egidijus Kavaliauskas, Shawn Porter, Jeff Horn, Julius Indongo, Viktor Postol, and Kell Brook will only keep you in the Pound for Pound top ten for so long.
