It's been known for a bit now, but this afternoon the news will be made official. Terence "Bud" Crawford and Viktor Postol are signed and set for a July 23 fight at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas, live on HBO pay-per-view.
Crawford (28-0, 20 KO) and Postol (28-0, 12 KO) are the two best junior welterweights in the sport right now, and both hold world titles, making this a unification fight, for whatever that's worth to you. The 28-year-old Crawford, who has the WBO belt, is coming off of a February 27 stoppage of Hank Lundy, making him 3-0 with three stoppage wins since his move up to 140 pounds last year. He was in the running to face Manny Pacquiao on April 9 before Pacquiao chose to face Timothy Bradley Jr instead.
Postol, the WBC titleholder, hasn't fought since October 3 of last year, when he took Lucas Matthysse apart and knocked him out in the 10th round, winning the vacant green belt. His last two notable fights (including a 2014 win over Selcuk Aydin) have been knockouts on HBO airwaves. At 32, he's also right in the prime of his career, and the Freddie Roach-trained Ukrainian is, on paper, the biggest threat Crawford has faced to date.
The card will also see WBO super middleweight titleholder Gilberto Ramirez (34-0, 24 KO) defend against fringe contender Dominik Britsch (32-2-1, 11 KO), the return of top featherweight prospect Oscar Valdez (19-0, 17 KO), and more.