Terence Crawford has confirmed that he surprised Amir Khan with a sparring session while helping his former opponent to prepare for his grudge match against Kell Brook this Saturday.
Crawford has fought and stopped both Britons but has been aiding his head coach Brian McIntyre in training Khan for his long-awaited bout with Brook in Manchester.
American Crawford secured a TKO win against Brook in November 2020, following a fight against Khan in April 2019 in which the Briton retired after six rounds after suffering a controversial low blow.
When asked by Sky Sports whether there was any truth to the rumours that he had sparred with Khan early in “King”’s training camp for this weekend’s fight – without any prior warning to the former Olympian – Crawford said: “Yeah, I just went in there to help him out, man.
“Amir, he’s ready, he’s been doing everything he needs to do to get the victory.”
Crawford, who is undefeated at 38-0 (29 knockouts), also insisted that his presence in Manchester this week is in no way intended to psyche out Brook.
“No, not at all, not at all. I’m here to support Amir Khan.”
When asked how Brook’s mentality might have been affected by his stoppage loss to Crawford, the multiple-weight world champion said: “I can’t speak for another man, you’re gonna have to ask him that type of question.”
Crawford also suggested that he did not believe Brook was past his best when they met in the ring, saying: “That fight was a great fight, to me he still had a lot in him. I caught him with a good shot.”
The 34-year-old acknowledged the importance of Khan remaining composed against fierce rival Brook, revealing: “Every day [we talk about sticking to the gameplan]. We fighters tend to forget the gameplan once we get in there and start getting in the groove. We lose sight of things we should be doing and shouldn’t be doing.
“That’s the most important thing, just for [Khan] to be himself but at the same time stick to what he prepared.”
Crawford also dismissed the notion that Khan, 35, has lacked any motivation in his preparation for this weekend’s main event, saying: “He wants this fight more than any fight. I can assure you that he went all out for this one.”
