Crawford’s IBF Title Threatened By Cuban Mandatory Iglesias

Osleys Iglesias called out undisputed super middleweight champion Terence Crawford and the former King of the division, Canelo Alvarez, this week on social media.

Crawford’s New Problem: A Hungry Cuban With Power

“I’m ready for Canelo and for Crawford! Come here!” said Osleys Iglesias on X, calling out Terence Crawford and Canelo Alvarez.

The unbeaten IBF mandatory Iglesias (14-0, 13 KOs) wants his title shot against the new champion, Crawford, and if not him, Canelo. Last month, then IBO 168-lb champion Iglesias knocked out Vladimir Shishikin in the eighth round in an IBF title eliminator in Montreal, Canada.

The victory for the Cuban southpaw Osleys made him the new mandatory for the title that Crawford now holds. He hasn’t said what he plans to do, but the IBF will likely order him soon to start defending it against Iglesias.

Understandably, the highly rated Iglesias wants his mandatory title shot at the belt Crawford, 38, now holds. He’s made no mention of wanting to defend them against the top contenders at super middleweight. Who can blame him?

The Mount Rushmore Dream Now Runs Through Iglesias

That IBF title must feel like a heavy burden for Crawford now after receiving this message from Osleys Iglesias. He now knows that he’s not going to be able to hold onto that belt for superficial purposes to use it as an adornment to give himself a sense of prestige.

If Crawford wants to hold onto the IBF strap, he’s going to have to face Iglesias and potentially meet his end. If he loses to Osleys, he can forget about his dreams of sitting among the all-time greats on the Mount Rushmore of boxing. That IBF belt isn’t jewelry.

The thing is, if Terence avoids Iglesias, that’s also a signal that he doesn’t belong because he will have shown a failure of nerves. 

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— Osleys Iglesias estrada (@OsleysIglesias) October 7, 2025

Crawford Surrounded by Sharks at 168

With much younger, powerful, and hungry contenders like the Cuban Osleys Iglesias and Christian Mbilli breathing down Crawford’s neck, why would he want to face them? What Crawford should do is vacate his IBF belt, along with his other three, at super middleweight if he has no intention of defending them against the contenders.

Those two sharks would feed on the aging Crawford, who looked his age in just scrapping by with a narrow 12-round unanimous decision over Alvarez last September. Both of them looked like shells of their former selves. The southpaw Iglesias’ one-punch power, long reach, and vicious right hook would be lethal for the 38-year-old Crawford if he dared to fight him.

It’s believed that Bud may choose to move down to 160 to try to capture one or more of the titles to become a six-division world champion. If he does that, the IBF and other sanctioning bodies will need to start stripping Crawford of his belts one by one at super middleweight.

Bud’s Strategy: Holding Titles to Lure Canelo Back?

Crawford’s likely rationale for holding onto his IBF, WBA, WBC, and WBO titles at 168 is to use them for bait to lure Canelo back for a rematch. The Omaha, Nebraska, native earned a massive purse of $50 million in his fight against Canelo on September 13.

Terence is not going to get that kind of money fighting anyone else other than David Benavidez, whom he has already said he has no interest in fighting. If Canelo doesn’t take the rematch, which it doesn’t appear that he will, Crawford is going to have to defend against Osleys Iglesias pronto. He can’t just sit on the IBF belt along with the others like he did with the WBA 154-lb title, which he recently vacated after not defending it for 13 months.

The IBF title that Crawford (42-0, 31 KOs) now holds at 168 must be defended, as there’s never been a mandatory defense of the strap since Canelo captured the belt against Caleb Plant on November 6, 2021. The IBF title has changed hands twice in the last four years, without any mandatory defenses.

Canelo made four successful defenses of the IBF strap before being stripped of the title in July 2024 for his failure to defend it against William Scull. The IBF then elevated Scull to the new champion, and subsequently lost the title to Alvarez earlier this year on May 3. Canelo’s defense of the IBF belt against Crawford on September 13th was voluntary.