Key Takeaways
- Trainer Brian “BoMac” McIntyre says Terence Crawford is fully retired, stressing that recent gym footage is just him staying in shape and helping fighters like Lester Martinez, not gearing up for a comeback or a Jaron “Boots” Ennis fight.
- McIntyre, who wanted Crawford to retire after the Errol Spence Jr. win, says there will be no exhibitions or returns, and that Ennis should focus on matching Crawford’s accomplishments instead of trying to lure him back.
- Crawford walked away at 38 with a 42-0 record, 31 KOs, and undisputed titles in three weight classes, capped by a historic win over Saúl “Canelo” Álvarez and a controversial WBC title stripping, with his camp now framing him as “one of the greats” who has nothing left to prove.
Terence Crawford may be back in the gym, but anyone waiting for a comeback can stop waiting. Crawford’s longtime trainer Brian “BoMac” McIntyre shut down speculation that the undefeated former champion is preparing to fight again, saying Bud’s recent workouts are exactly that: workouts.
“Bud done, man. He said he done,” McIntyre told Brian Custer on The Last Stand. “I respect his decision and I want him to be done because he had nothing else to prove in the sport.”
Comeback chatter picked up after footage showed Crawford training alongside undefeated super middleweight Lester Martinez. McIntyre explained that Crawford remains close to Martinez and simply wanted to spend a few days in camp, stay sharp, and help another fighter. He dismissed suggestions that Crawford was testing himself for a potential fight against Jaron “Boots” Ennis.
McIntyre later made the situation even more explicit when Custer asked whether an exhibition or some other return could be possible. “Terence Crawford is not coming back,” McIntyre said. “Bud just like to stay in the gym.”
That doesn’t mean McIntyre lacks confidence in what Crawford could still do. Asked about a hypothetical matchup with Ennis, the trainer backed his longtime fighter, but said Ennis would be better served chasing Crawford’s accomplishments rather than trying to pull him out of retirement.
“His best thing is, let the man stay in retirement and ride off in the sunset,” McIntyre said.
McIntyre said he wasn’t surprised Crawford eventually called it a career. In fact, he wanted him gone considerably earlier.
“I wanted Bud to retire after Spence,” McIntyre revealed. Crawford instead moved up, pursued more opportunities and ultimately decided to challenge Álvarez. “We gonna go up and fight Canelo,” McIntyre recalled Crawford telling him.
The team accepted the challenge and, as McIntyre put it, went out to “make history.”
The retirement also followed controversy outside the ring. Shortly before his announcement, Crawford was stripped of his WBC super middleweight title after the sanctioning body said it had not received required fees or responses to its communications. Crawford nevertheless retired undefeated, with championships across five divisions.
McIntyre’s position also echoes something David “Flat” Sparks said months before Crawford actually retired. Following Crawford’s win over Álvarez and his subsequent gunpoint traffic stop in Omaha, Sparks argued on MRECK TV’s Let the Sparkz Fly that Crawford had reached the point where there was little reason to continue.
Sparks’ advice at the time? “Ride off into the sunset.”
Crawford ultimately did just that. And according to the trainer who helped guide him to the top, gym footage shouldn’t be mistaken for unfinished business.
McIntyre now wants Crawford’s career discussed in historical terms.
“One of the greats, man,” he said. “Bud never turned his back on any fight, and he accomplished what no man has ever done before.”
