Terence Crawford is gearing up for what could be the biggest test of his career as he prepares to take on Canelo Alvarez at Allegiant Stadium in Las Vegas. The undisputed super middleweight clash, promoted by UFC boss Dana White, is already being billed as “Once In A Lifetime.” But the journey has been challenging for the Omaha, Nebraska-born Southpaw.

The two-division undisputed champion has been through a few trying times that tested his will. In 2008, just as his career was beginning, a bullet nearly ended it all. The shooting didn’t just leave a scar. It forced him to change, to focus, and to rise above the negativity that was surrounding him. So why was Terence Crawford shot, and how did the incident turn him into the man we see today?

Terence Crawford’s dangerous shooting incident in 2008

Terence Crawford debuted professionally after an excellent amateur run on March 14, 2008. In that year alone, he fought five battles, winning all. However, a near-fatal incident came very close to derailing his November fight.

A few days before he turned twenty-one in September, frittering away time with a few friends one night, ‘Bud’ was shooting dice. Soon, he found himself winning. After a couple of rounds, Terence called it quits, took his winnings, and sat inside his 1986 Pontiac Cutlass Supreme car. However, he made a mistake by not hurrying out of the place. Instead, he started counting. Suddenly, someone shot at him from behind. The bullet, a nine-millimeter, came through his vehicle’s rear window.

As it turned out, the person who shot hadn’t aimed at Crawford but at someone else with whom he was shooting dice. The bullet, thankfully, instead of settling inside his head, hit his head on the right side, right below his ear, near his neck. Reportedly, the nine-millimeter had changed its direction after hitting the rear windscreen. Had it not then, on account of a straight hit, Crawford’s condition could have been very likely fatal.

However, despite the wound, badly bleeding, the future world champion remained composed and drove himself to the hospital and patiently waited in the ER for someone to help him. Crawford even called up his mother and trainer ‘Bomac’ McIntyre, as he reached, apprising them of the incident. Luckily, his injuries weren’t deadly, and after a few stitches, he got discharged.

Once again, proving his mental toughness, two months after the incident, Terence Crawford fought the fifth match of the year against Michael Williams on November 8 and won via a second-round knockout. His perseverance paid off six years later as he earned his first world title. But the question still remains, who shot ‘Bud’?

Who shot Terence Crawford?

Although Crawford has maintained his silence on the matter, reports suggest the bullet wasn’t even meant for him. The shooter had aimed at someone else in the dice game. Crawford was simply in the wrong place at the wrong time. Some accounts even claim the man who fired at him later died in another shooting.

The incident should give fans a glimpse of his toughness. But it also sets the stage for a deeper transformation.

How did the incident change Crawford’s life and career?

Terence Crawford has often spoken about the lessons from that night. His uncle reportedly urged him to cut ties with the wrong crowd. As ‘Bud’ once shared in an interview with CNN, “‘You’ve got to change your life, you’ve got to change the people that you hang out with, you’ve got to change your surroundings, you’ve got to change your train of thought.’ And I put all my time and my effort into the sport of boxing. And it’s paying off, as you can see.”

Yet, on Logan Paul’s ‘Impaulsive’ podcast, Crawford shared that he doesn’t dwell on the past anymore. In his own words, “It’s behind me now, so I really don’t care to talk about it. My life has changed dramatically. I’m in a way different mental space. I’m a different person and on top of that, God has blessed me with a second chance, second and third chance, so I just like to be more positive and look towards the future than to look in the rear-view.”

The shooting became more than an accident; it became a turning point. It forced him to leave behind old habits and double down on boxing. Within years, that decision paid off. Titles followed, and so did his reputation as one of the best pound-for-pound fighters on earth.

The bullet that night didn’t just miss his head. It gave him clarity. It turned a young fighter into a man chasing greatness. So as he walks into Allegiant Stadium against Canelo Alvarez, fans won’t just see an undefeated boxer, they’ll see a survivor who turned tragedy into fuel for greatness!