After a stunning defeat of Canelo Alvarez in September, which gave him all four undisputed super middleweight titles, Terence Crawford has officially been stripped of his WBC belt. But folks aren’t buying the “official” reason behind it all
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On Wednesday (Dec. 3), Crawford was stripped of the belt for failing to pay sanctioning fees to the WBC for the Álvarez fight and his previous bout against Israil Madrimov in August 2024. The World Boxing Council announced the decision at its national convention, stating multiple notices were sent to Crawford’s team without a response.
The WBC also claimed that it reduced the fee for the Álvarez fight to approximately $300,000 instead of the 3% of the winner’s earnings that the WBC Rules & Regulations mandate. The move brought an abrupt end to Crawford’s reign as the undisputed champion at 168 pounds.
Taking to social media in an eight-minute-long video, Crawford shared his dismay with the WBC’s ruling by calling out the organization’s president, Mauricio Sulaiman.
“I saw Mauricio had a lot to say about me not paying him $300,000, plus another $100,000 something for sanctioning fees. Then he gonna tell me I ain’t apologizing? Who the f**k do you think I am? Boy, you better slap yourself. I ain’t paying your ass shit,” Crawford said.
Crawford also accused the organization of attempting to exploit him under the guise of sanctioning fees.
“You, the WBC, you got the green belt, which doesn’t mean ****. The real belt is the Ring belt, which is free,” Crawford continued. “You want me to pay you more than the other sanctioning bodies because you feel like you’re better than them?.. You can take the ****ing belt. It’s a trophy anyway.”
Responding to Crawford’s scorching-hot commentary, Sulaiman expressed his regret over the situation during a recent interview with IFL TV.
“It’s very unfortunate. The worst situation, the worst decision that the WBC could ever make is to withdraw the recognition of a champion,” Sulaiman shared. “I’m very sorry for Terence’s actions. His actions led the WBC to decide something.”
Sulaiman described the sanctioning fees as “minimal”, and he noted that 75% of the fee goes to the José Sulaimán Boxers Fund, which assists former boxers. The remaining 25% goes to WBC employees.
For those unaware of how sanctioning fees work in the “sweet science” of boxing, here’s a breakdown: The practice of charging a percentage of a boxer’s earnings to fight for a major title has become the modus operandi for the four major sanctioning bodies (WBA, WBC, IBF, WBO) of boxing when the sport became a global phenomenon. The model was created to cover the sanctioning organizations’ operating costs, such as overhead from their offices, their annual conventions, and to fund other programs.
As governing bodies gained influence, they formalized a system where fighters and promoters were charged fees in exchange for having their fights officially recognized and for the right to compete for the organization’s championship belt.
For fights with multi-million dollar purses, some organizations, like the WBC and WBA, have reportedly implemented fee caps (i.e., the WBC’s $300,000 cap).
Critics of the practice have questioned the allocation of the millions of dollars in fees that have been collected. Some have described the fees as an extra “tax,” making the once prestigious belts mere “trophies.” Others pointed to the history of sanctioning bodies being involved in corruption.
For example, in 1999, Robert W. Lee Sr, the head of the International Boxing Federation (IBF), was indicted on charges that he took payoffs to improve fighters’ rankings.
To address the corruption, Congress passed the Muhammad Ali Boxing Reform Act (2000), to protect boxers “from exploitative and unethical business practices by promoters, managers, and sanctioning bodies, though the efficacy of this act in controlling fees remains debated.”
When news of Crawford being stripped of the title became public, Black Twitter was quick to respond with their takes on the situation. One user said that officers of the sanctioning bodies of boxing operate like members of organized crime organizations.
“Terrence Crawford is the smartest active boxer….that belt don’t mean sh*t…the WBC has been scamming boxers for years,” the user wrote. “All of the sanctioning bodies move like a cartel of thieves.”
Another user noted that with all of Crawford’s kids, there was no way that he would pay the $300,000 just to keep a belt.
“Terrence Crawford has 7 kids. Who tf is about to pay 300k just to hold a belt?” the post read. “@WBCBoxing f**k yall.. if anything yall should be paying him for achieving the belt and whooping Canelo a$$ on live television.”
With the rules already on the books, another user said that Crawford is wrong for not following them.
“I’m sorry, my brother, but I have to disagree with you,” the post read. “Terrence Crawford is wrong in every way there are rules that need to be followed. Just as everybody else pays a fee. He has to pay the fee too. There is nothing special about him that he is exempt from this.”
Even though he no longer has the WBC belt, he’s still number one in the sport, according to another user.
“Told ya Crawford didn’t care to pay the 300k then another 100K,” the user wrote. “Bud is on top. What does he care if they take his belts? Y’all heard it first from Tan.”
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