Fallen Maurice Hooker Says Vergil Ortiz Jr. Is Not Ready for Terence Crawford

Vergil Ortiz Jr. has silenced his critics once again, by taking out Maurice Hooker via TKO to grab the WBO (International) welterweight title. He is now 17-0 in the professional journey with all his wins coming via KO. Meanwhile, Ortiz Jr. has recently claimed himself ready for a test against WBO welterweight world champion, Terence Crawford.

While his recent win should have validated the claim, not everyone feels he is ready for ‘Bud’, including Maurice Hooker. ‘Mighty Mo’ praised Ortiz Jr. and applauded his performance tonight, but he hesitated to pose Ortiz Jr’s supremacy over Terence Crawford. In the post-fight interview, Hooker reflected his opinion on a possible showdown between Vergil Ortiz Jr and Terence Crawford.

“He is young, he up and coming but it’s levels to this. I have been there with the best. He (Vergil Ortiz Jr.) a good guy, he young, top two, trying to get Terence Crawford, I don’t know,” said Hooker.

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Despite being stopped by Ortiz Jr., Hooker remained doubtful about his prowess. While many could have billed it as mere banter, ‘Mighty Mo’ appeared serious with his thoughts and didn’t demean the youngster.

Hooker added, “He’s good man, Vergil is good man, but he’s not ready man. I being honest, I love Vergil from Dallas, you know. He is not just ready.”

‘Mighty Mo’ concluded that the youngster had to just keep taking fights and winning them to be ready to touch gloves with ‘Bud’.

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Vergil Ortiz Jr. vs Terence Crawford- Is it a possibility?

Crawford, 37-0, is one of the greatest elites in the welterweight division and a pound-for-pound great in the sport. So, he is still way ahead in the title race. Also, Crawford is on the brink of fighting Manny Pacquiao or Errol Spence Jr. So, he may not desire to fight a rising youngster.

However, Ortiz Jr. is climbing the ladder pretty fast and has already sent shock waves through the 147 lbs unit. He cannot rightfully claim a WBO title shot against Crawford right away. However, on bagging a few more wins, he may earn the right to challenge ‘Bud’, paving the way for an electrifying welterweight blockbuster of recent times.

Do you think Vergil Ortiz Jr. vs Terence Crawford will be an important fight?

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