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Errol Spence Jr. is one of the best boxers on the planet at the moment. The current WBC and IBF Welterweight Champion will look to add the WBA (Super) Welterweight Title to his collection when he faces Yordenis Ugás on April 16th, 2022.
Wielding awesome punching power and possessing a strong technical skillset, Spence has proven to be one of the most complete fighters in boxing today. 'The Truth' holds stellar victories over the likes of Kell Brook, Shawn Porter, and Danny Garcia. With an unquestionable resume, and while competing in a division booming with elite talent, Spence has the potential to end his career as an all-time great.
Competing in one of boxing's most prestigious divisions, Spence is surrounded by pure monsters. From hot prospects to established champions, this list will examine three fighters who can defeat 'The Truth', and two who can't.
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#2. Josh Taylor cannot defeat Errol Spence
While not officially a welterweight, Scottish star Josh Taylor holds all four major titles in the light welterweight (140lbs) division. Large for his weightclass, and already having captured all the belts, 'The Tartan Tornado' has expressed immense interest in moving up in weight for some time now.
From 2018 to 2019, Taylor competed in the highly acclaimed World Boxing Super Series tournament. The tournament featured some of the best light welterweights on the planet. In the series, 'The Tartan Tornado' defeated Ryan Martin, Ivan Baranchyk, and Regis Prograis. All three men were undefeated and possessed their own unique styles.
Taylor won the tournament and captured the IBF and WBA (Super) Light Welterweight Titles in the process. Afterwards, fans clamored for a high-profile unification clash between Josh Taylor and WBC and WBO Light Welterweight Champion Jose Ramirez. In a spectacular display of dominance, the Scottish fighter defeated Ramirez. Taylor knocked his undefeated foe down in the sixth and seventh rounds and picked up a unanimous decision victory, unifying all of the titles in the process.
Taylor's incredible run at 140lbs led to immense excitement over him possibly making his welterweight debut. However, in his most recent bout, the Scotsman clawed his way to a controversial split-decision over undefeated Jack Catterall. Many fans believed Catterall did more than enough to win and cited Taylor's decision victory as a robbery.
This less than stellar performance from 'The Tartan Tornado' now has fans wondering: if he struggled to overcome Catterall, how would he be able to deal with a beast like Errol Spence?
The welterweight champion is bigger, stronger, has a longer reach, and a much higher knockout percentage than Catterall. How would Taylor react if 'The Truth' were to land flush? How would he deal with Errol Spence's size and aggression? After Taylor's latest outing, many fans no longer have hopeful answers to these questions.
#3. Jaron 'Boots' Ennis can defeat Errol Spence
Arguably boxing's hottest and most exciting prospect, Jaron 'Boots' Ennis has put the entire welterweight division on notice. Only 24 years old, the Philadelphia native holds an incredible record of 28-0, with 26 wins coming by way of knockout.
While Ennis does not have many notable names on his resume like Spence, the young prodigy has a wide arsenal that makes him a threat in the ring. Raw talent, speed, precision, knockout power, Ennis has all the tools to become boxing's next big star.
'Boots' fights behind a sharp jab and throws punches in bunches. A young fighter like him who is not afraid to let his quick hands go will be a tough opponent to contend with, even for a champion like Spence.
Should the two men step into the ring someday, 'The Truth' will have to go up against a younger fighter that possesses an iron will. Ennis, like Spence, is not afraid to dig into his opponent's body to open up the head. Standing at 5'10", a similar height to Spence, 'Boots' could also possibly match the champion in terms of physical strength.
The Philadelphia native, should he be given a chance in the near future, could very well showcase his elite skills to the whole world by defeating and dethroning Errol Spence.
#1. Keith 'One Time' Thurman cannot defeat 'The Truth'
Once upon a time, Keith 'One Time' Thurman was considered to be the baddest welterweight on the planet.
Having defeated the likes of Robert Guerrero, Shawn Porter, and Danny Garcia, Keith Thurman was once the unified WBC and WBA (Super) Welterweight Champion. Known for his incredible knockout power and strong grasp of the fundamentals, Thurman was seen as an unstoppable force at welterweight.
However, after lengthy bouts with injuries and inactivity, Thurman's status as one of the division's best began to diminish. Returning from a long lay-off, 'One Time' pulled off an unimpressive decision victory over Josesito Lopez. After the fight, Thurman lost to boxing icon Manny Pacquiao.
In the bout with the Filipino legend, 'One Time' was knocked down in the first round and also showed his weakness towards body attacks. In the tenth round, Pacquiao, who has never been famous for attacking the body, landed a hard body shot that caused Thurman to wince and pull out his mouthguard.
If Pacquiao, at 40 years old, was able to do this type of damage to Keith Thurman, it's not difficult to imagine what a prolific body puncher like Errol Spence would do.
After his 2019 loss to 'PacMan', Thurman went on a near three-year hiatus. In February 2022, he made his comeback against welterweight debutant Mario Barrios and earned an impressive decision victory. While once again entering the win column, it's still hard to picture this version of Thurman posing a serious threat to a a champion like Spence.
Thurman has called Errol Spence out in the past couple of years. In an interesting turn of events, Spence was once the hungry contender who campaigned for a showdown against Thurman when the latter was the established champion. Now, it seems Spence holds all the cards.
A fight between the two fighters might have once been considered a tantalizing clash. However, now, with Spence in his championship prime, and Thurman only able to show shades of his former glory, it's difficult to give 'One Time' any chance of victory against 'The Truth' should they ever come face to face.
#2. Yordenis Ugas can beat Errol Spence
Errol Spence vs. Yordenis Ugas will take place on April 16th at the AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas.
Ugas has the necessary tools to frustrate and throw Spence off his game. The Cuban-born fighter is not a boxer who pulls his opponents into phonebooth brawls. He comes from an extensive amateur background and usually enters the ring with a technical gameplan in mind. Despite having four defeats on his record, with all of them being close decisions, Ugas has proven to be a nightmare opponent for even the most elite fighters of his generation.
On March 9, 2019, the Cuban technician fought Shawn Porter for the WBC Welterweight Championship. Porter emerged victorious with a split decision and many fans believed Ugas had done enough to win. The Cuban bounced back by defeating the undefeated Omar Figueroa Jr. Two years later, Ugas defeated the legendary Manny Pacquiao to earn the WBA (Super) Welterweight Title.
Against Spence, Ugas has the chance to shock the world. Spence will struggle to land clean against the crafty Cuban. With crisp hands, sound defense, and good footwork, Ugas can disrupt Spence's rhythm and make him fall into the trap of waiting too long, in turn causing rounds to slip by. Although it's highly unlikely the Cuban blows Spence away with an emphatic knockout, he could leave Texas with a hard-fought decision victory.
#1. Terence 'Bud' Crawford can defeat Errol Spence
If there's one welterweight who can beat Errol Spence, it's Terence 'Bud' Crawford.
Possessing phenomenal in-ring IQ and dynamite power in both hands, Crawford is able to neutralize his opponents' greatest strengths while landing devastating blows. The Nebraska-native is able to fight out of both the southpaw and orthodox stance, making him an awkward foe for most boxers. If 'Bud' is unable to land in one stance, he will switch to the other in the blink of an eye.
With a perfect 38-0 record and having won titles in three weightclasses, Crawford has become one of the best fighters currently competing in the sport. He has all the necessary tools to conquer Errol Spence. 'Bud' posessess the accuracy, the power, the in-ring IQ, and, most of all, the experience.
Crawford has seen all styles and has fought elite fighters from all around the world. The current WBO Welterweight Champion has defeated the likes of Yuriorkis Gamboa, Viktor Postol, Julius Indongo, Jeff Horn, Amir Khan, Kell Brook, and Shawn Porter. Each of these men came into the ring with their own unique gameplan, whether it was to try and pull 'Bud' into a dogfight, or whether it was trying to confuse him with blistering handspeed, each man failed and fell before the powerful switch hitter.
Errol Spence is a tremendous fighter. There is a reason he remains undefeated and there is a reason he is one of the kings at 147 pounds. However, Crawford would be like no opponent Spence has faced before. 'Bud' has a granite chin, stellar in-ring intelligence, and the ability to fight on the inside and outside. Should the day arrive when these two champions finally step into the ring against one another, boxing fans will rejoice, and Errol Spence will have to find out if he really is 'The Truth'.
