The P4P star who was shot in the head!

Today we celebrate the birthday of boxing star Terence Crawford who turns 33 today.

Here are 5 things you might not know about the multi-weight world champion.

1. He was shot in the head back in 2008:

When Crawford was 4-0 as a pro and admittedly at a standstill in his pro career, he was shot in the back of the head – just below his ear and above his neck. A case of being at the wrong place at the wrong time, Crawford had been shooting dice with friends to win some money and was sat in his car counting the winnings when he was shot from behind. The shooter hadn’t been aiming at him, but at somebody in the group with whom he had been playing dice.

Crawford managed to drive himself to the hospital where doctors told him about his lucky escape. The car window had slowed the bullet down and instead of it traveling straight, it began to spin and so when it hit him, it bounced out rather than penetrating his skull, which would have almost certainly been fatal.

Crawford was due to fight 2 weeks after the incident and still wanted to go ahead with the fight. He got stitched up and left hospital 5 hours later. Crawford’s unbelievable recovery meant he was back in the ring just 2 months later for his 5th professional fight. According to Crawford’s head coach, the bullet wound changed everything for Crawford, all in the right direction. It was, clearly, the ultimate dose of perspective.

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2. A team of 3 since day one:

Unusually, Crawford has 3 coaches who all bring different inputs, perspectives, and approaches but ultimately all pushing together towards the same goal – ‘to get Crawford to be the best he can possibly be and reach his potential.’

Brian McIntyre – Co-Manager and Head Trainer
Esau Diegcuez – Assistant Trainer
Jamie Belt – Strength & Conditioning Coach

3. Student of the game:

Crawford started boxing when he was 7 years old before taking a 5-year break and returning in 2002. He had a professional style as an amateur and is a keen student to the game. He wanted to learn and be able to fight and beat all styles – which is what he feels has brought him on the most as a fighter. Crawford believes he can fight in every way. “I look at myself as the complete fighter. There’s pretty much nothing I cant do in the ring. I can fight going forward, I can fight backward, side to side. I can box, I can counterpunch, I can slug it out, I can switch from orthodox to southpaw effectively and I can outsmart and beat my opponent in the ring.”

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4. Crawford has an MMA background:

Crawford used to wrestle as a child, having competed in the sport at high school. His kid’s wrestle and his eldest son is ranked as number 1 in the nation right now – although Crawford isn’t keen on his children following in his footsteps into combat sports. In January 2020, Crawford’s promoter Bob Arum suggested TBUD could fight Conor McGregor (once in the octagon and once in the boxing ring). Crawford said on the matter “Outside of boxing I really know how to fight. The only thing I would have to worry about is the kicks, that’s it. Take the kick out, I wouldn’t have to do anything but train and make sure I’m in shape”.

5. His breakthrough came through sparring Tim Bradley:

Crawford’s major breakthrough in boxing came when he was called up to spar with Tim Bradley. At this time, Crawford wasn’t getting any fights. He watched people on TV he knew he could beat and as he puts it ‘was stuck on the shelf’. His manager told him to remain patient. When the call came from Bradley’s team, they insisted he had to fight southpaw. When he arrived they said he was too little (as Bradley at the time was a big 140 pounder). Crawford’s team said if TBUD couldn’t hold his own on the first day, they could send him home. After the first session, Bradley was so impressed with Terence, he attempted to buy him out of his contract.

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Terence Crawford is said to be close to signing a fight with Britain’s Kell Brook and is one of only 4 male boxers to simultaneously hold all 4 major world titles in boxing (WBA, WBC, IBF, & WBO) – Jermaine Taylor, Oleksandr Usyk, and Bernard Hopkins are the others.

Happy Birthday, Champ!