Terence Crawford is eyeing a life-changing payday against Manny Pacquiao, despite the difficulties in organising the bout amid a global pandemic.
The WBO welterweight champion, considered by many to be among the best pound-for-pound fighters in boxing, is plotting his return to the ring for the first time since the coronavirus crisis struck.
Crawford, 32, has long been linked with a money-spinning clash against Pacquiao, who currently holds the WBA belt. Nine years Crawford's senior, the Filipino hasn't fought since defeating Keith Thurman last July, while Crawford's most recent competitive appearance came in December with the TKO win against Egidijus Kavaliauskas.
The victory lifted Crawford’s record to 36 wins from 36 professional bouts. Pacquiao, meanwhile, has 62 victories and seven defeats from his 71 fights.
Speaking late on Monday on DAZN's AK & Barak Show, Crawford discussed the possibility of facing Pacquiao and said initial talks had taken place, although he conceded the present landscape added another layer to negotiations. Elite-level boxing returns next week to Las Vegas, with events held behind closed doors,
“We’ve been in contact with [promoter] Bob [Arum] and Manny’s men: they want the fight, we want the fight," Crawford said. “Basically, we’re trying to figure out the money situation.
"With this pandemic going on right now it’s kind of hard putting on a big fight with no audience and not knowing how you’re going to get your return back. So we've got to figure out all the details with that first.”
A sitting senator in the Philippines, Pacquiao had originally set next month for his boxing comeback and cited a match-up against either Crawford, Mikey Garcia, or IBF and WBC belt-holder Errol Spence Jr.
However, the pandemic and the subsequent travel restrictions imposed because of it have postponed his plans.
“He can’t even fight right now, so it’s not just me,” said Crawford, who has also held world titles at lightweight. “If that fight presents itself there’s going to be more money than I made in my career to date. I think that fight could get made, get worked out.
“But at the same time he’s dealing with the same issue I’m dealing with. Every top fighter is; it’s not like I’m the only one dealing with this. You look at all these other fighters, who they’re going to fight and how they’re going to get paid, that’s the big dilemma right now.
“The fighters in England and overseas, they can’t come over [to the United States] to fight, they’re stuck over there, so what about them? So it’s all messed up right now.”
Asked if he would be willing to wait for the return of fans to secure a more lucrative fight, Crawford said: “For sure. I’m done risking my health for nothing. I did that for years; I took pay cuts for years just to get to where I am now.
"A lot of people don’t know what I’ve been through with pay cuts and taking this for this and taking this for that. I’ve sacrificed a lot to get to where I am now, more than probably any fighter in the game right now.
“And that’s because I knew where I was heading. I knew that I needed those fights to secure my legacy, becoming undisputed, becoming unified, becoming Ring Magazine champion of two different weight classes.
"You can’t get to that just thinking 'I need the money'. Sometimes you’ve got to take a little pay cut here to get a certain fighter in the ring.”
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Power: 650hp at 6,750rpm
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Our legal consultant
Name: Dr Hassan Mohsen Elhais
Position: legal consultant with Al Rowaad Advocates and Legal Consultants.
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PROFILE OF HALAN
Started: November 2017
Founders: Mounir Nakhla, Ahmed Mohsen and Mohamed Aboulnaga
Based: Cairo, Egypt
Sector: transport and logistics
Size: 150 employees
Investment: approximately $8 million
Investors include: Singapore’s Battery Road Digital Holdings, Egypt’s Algebra Ventures, Uber co-founder and former CTO Oscar Salazar
Astroworld
Travis Scott
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The National Archives, Abu Dhabi
Founded over 50 years ago, the National Archives collects valuable historical material relating to the UAE, and is the oldest and richest archive relating to the Arabian Gulf.
Much of the material can be viewed on line at the Arabian Gulf Digital Archive - https://www.agda.ae/en
The specs
Engine: 2.0-litre 4cyl turbo
Power: 261hp at 5,500rpm
Torque: 405Nm at 1,750-3,500rpm
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Fuel consumption: 6.9L/100km
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War 2
Director: Ayan Mukerji
Stars: Hrithik Roshan, NTR, Kiara Advani, Ashutosh Rana
Rating: 2/5
Countries recognising Palestine
France, UK, Canada, Australia, Portugal, Belgium, Malta, Luxembourg, San Marino and Andorra
Director: Laxman Utekar
Cast: Vicky Kaushal, Akshaye Khanna, Diana Penty, Vineet Kumar Singh, Rashmika Mandanna
Rating: 1/5
Results
6.30pm Madjani Stakes Rated Conditions (PA) I Dh160,000 I 1,900m I Winner: Mawahib, Tadhg O’Shea (jockey), Eric Lemartinel (trainer)
7.05pm Maiden Dh150,000 I 1,400m I Winner One Season, Antonio Fresu, Satish Seemar
7.40pm: Maiden Dh150,000 I 2,000m I Winner Street Of Dreams, Pat Dobbs, Doug Watson
8.15pm Dubai Creek Listed I Dh250,000 I 1,600m I Winner Heavy Metal, Royston Ffrench, Salem bin Ghadayer
8.50pm The Entisar Listed I Dh250,000 I 2,000m I Winner Etijaah, Dane O’Neill, Doug Watson
9.25pm The Garhoud Listed I Dh250,000 I 1,200m I Winner Muarrab, Dane O’Neill, Ali Rashid Al Raihe
10pm Handicap I Dh160,000 I 1,600m I Winner Sea Skimmer, Patrick Cosgrave, Helal Al Alawi
COMPANY PROFILE
Name: Cofe
Year started: 2018
Based: UAE
Employees: 80-100
Amount raised: $13m
Investors: KISP ventures, Cedar Mundi, Towell Holding International, Takamul Capital, Dividend Gate Capital, Nizar AlNusif Sons Holding, Arab Investment Company and Al Imtiaz Investment Group
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- Carbon sink: Seagrass sequesters carbon up to 35X faster than tropical rainforests
- Marine nursery: Crucial habitat for juvenile fish, crustations, and invertebrates
- Biodiversity: Support species like sea turtles, dugongs, and seabirds
- Coastal protection: Reduce erosion and improve water quality
Hamilton’s 2017
Australia - 2nd; China - 1st; Bahrain - 2nd; Russia - 4th; Spain - 1st; Monaco - 7th; Canada - 1st; Azerbaijan - 5th; Austria - 4th; Britain - 1st; Hungary - 4th; Belgium - 1st; Italy - 1st; Singapore - 1st; Malaysia - 2nd; Japan - 1st; United States - 1st; Mexico - 9th
Know your cyber adversaries
Cryptojacking: Compromises a device or network to mine cryptocurrencies without an organisation's knowledge.
Distributed denial-of-service: Floods systems, servers or networks with information, effectively blocking them.
Man-in-the-middle attack: Intercepts two-way communication to obtain information, spy on participants or alter the outcome.
Malware: Installs itself in a network when a user clicks on a compromised link or email attachment.
Phishing: Aims to secure personal information, such as passwords and credit card numbers.
Ransomware: Encrypts user data, denying access and demands a payment to decrypt it.
Spyware: Collects information without the user's knowledge, which is then passed on to bad actors.
Trojans: Create a backdoor into systems, which becomes a point of entry for an attack.
Viruses: Infect applications in a system and replicate themselves as they go, just like their biological counterparts.
Worms: Send copies of themselves to other users or contacts. They don't attack the system, but they overload it.
Zero-day exploit: Exploits a vulnerability in software before a fix is found.
UAE Rugby finals day
Games being played at The Sevens, Dubai
2pm, UAE Conference final
Dubai Tigers v Al Ain Amblers
4pm, UAE Premiership final
Abu Dhabi Harlequins v Jebel Ali Dragons
What is Diwali?
The Hindu festival is at once a celebration of the autumn harvest and the triumph of good over evil, as outlined in the Ramayana.
According to the Sanskrit epic, penned by the sage Valmiki, Diwali marks the time that the exiled king Rama – a mortal with superhuman powers – returned home to the city of Ayodhya with his wife Sita and brother Lakshman, after vanquishing the 10-headed demon Ravana and conquering his kingdom of Lanka. The people of Ayodhya are believed to have lit thousands of earthen lamps to illuminate the city and to guide the royal family home.
In its current iteration, Diwali is celebrated with a puja to welcome the goodness of prosperity Lakshmi (an incarnation of Sita) into the home, which is decorated with diyas (oil lamps) or fairy lights and rangoli designs with coloured powder. Fireworks light up the sky in some parts of the word, and sweetmeats are made (or bought) by most households. It is customary to get new clothes stitched, and visit friends and family to exchange gifts and greetings.
The bio
Who inspires you?
I am in awe of the remarkable women in the Arab region, both big and small, pushing boundaries and becoming role models for generations. Emily Nasrallah was a writer, journalist, teacher and women’s rights activist
How do you relax?
Yoga relaxes me and helps me relieve tension, especially now when we’re practically chained to laptops and desks. I enjoy learning more about music and the history of famous music bands and genres.
What is favourite book?
The Perks of Being a Wallflower - I think I've read it more than 7 times
What is your favourite Arabic film?
Hala2 Lawen (Translation: Where Do We Go Now?) by Nadine Labaki
What is favourite English film?
Mamma Mia
Best piece of advice to someone looking for a career at Google?
If you’re interested in a career at Google, deep dive into the different career paths and pinpoint the space you want to join. When you know your space, you’re likely to identify the skills you need to develop.
RESULT
Manchester United 1 Brighton and Hove Albion 0
Man United: Dunk (66' og)
Man of the Match: Shane Duffy (Brighton)
MATCH INFO
Jersey 147 (20 overs)
UAE 112 (19.2 overs)
Jersey win by 35 runs
