Terence Crawford, widely regarded as the best pound-for-pound boxer alive, lost his WBC title over unpaid sanctioning fees. WBC president Mauricio Sulaiman called Crawford’s refusal “a slap in the face.” Crawford fired back, recording a video saying, “Boy, you better slap your f***ing self.” The dispute surfaced during the WBC convention in Bangkok this week.
Clash Over Sanctioning Fees
Crawford became the first three-weight undisputed champion in the four-belt era after defeating Canelo Alvarez three months ago. He earned around $50 million for that fight, with the WBC reducing his fee to 0.6 per cent. Sulaiman said most of this payment, $225,000 of $300,000, would have supported the Boxers Fund charity. Crawford refused, claiming he should not pay more than other sanctioning bodies, arguing the WBC acted superior.
Aftermath and Public Debate
The WBC reclaimed the green-and-gold belt, which Crawford dismissed as merely symbolic. He praised The Ring title as “the real belt.” Meanwhile, Britain’s Hamzah Sheeraz and interim champion Christian Mbilli must contest the vacant WBC super-middleweight title. Fans debate whether Crawford acted heroically against an inflated system or irresponsibly denied a charity its funds. The dispute highlights ongoing tensions over sanctioning fees in boxing.
