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Oscar De La Hoya makes play for Terence Crawford, Alexis Rocha could be next

Terence Crawford (centre) with Oscar De La Hoya (left) and Bernard Hopkins (right)

Welterweight contender Alexis ‘Lex’ Rocha 22-1 (14) wants a crack at WBO 147-pound champion Terence ‘Bud’ Crawford 39-0 (30) sooner rather than later.

The 25-year-old southpaw scored a highlight-reel knockout of late replacement George ‘Red Tiger’ Ashie 33-6-1 (25) of Ghana at the YouTube Theater in Inglewood, California on Saturday night.

Ashie was outclassed, getting dropped by a right hook in the third and finished off by the same punch in the seventh.

“I wanted to make a statement,” Rocha said. “Crawford is next. But if that can’t happen, I want all the big names. I’m signed to the best promotional company in the world and I know they’ll make it happen. [Ashie] was a tough fighter, but I knew he wasn’t going to hang with me.”

Rocha, who is promoted by Oscar De La Hoya’s Golden Boy Promotions, might get the opportunity to face Crawford in the near future.

De La Hoya and his business partner Bernard Hopkins met with Crawford recently to pitch their promotional services.

Southpaw Crawford, 35, is a promotional free agent after splitting from Las Vegas outfit Top Rank. He was in negotiations to face fellow lefty WBC, WBA and IBF welterweight champion Errol ‘The Truth’ Spence Jr 28-0 (22) last year, but those talks fell apart and he ended up fighting former European champion David Avanesyan 29-4-1 (17) instead. That bout ended up in a one-sided sixth-round knockout for the titleholder.

De La Hoya and Hopkins offered a three-fight deal to Omaha, Nebraska’s Crawford that would culminate in a bout with Spence. He posted a photo of the meeting to social media with the message “Big things brewing… #StayTuned”.

“Future plans for Terence Crawford,” De La Hoya said on DAZN ahead of the Rocha-Ashie fight.

“He wants to fight the big fights, against Errol Spence. I told him we can make that fight happen. Ryan Garcia versus Tank Davis is going to open a lot of doors for us that will lead to us doing business with PBC.

“I told Crawford, let us present to you a schedule of fights leading up to Spence. I have all the confidence in the world that Crawford versus Spence will happen.”

The WBO has Virgil Ortiz ranked number one, Keith Thurman ranked number two and Rocha ranked number three. With Ortiz expected to face Eimantas Stanionis on April 29 and Spence slated to face Thurman at a date to be determind in the same month, Rocha appears to be in the box seat to face Crawford.

“We did discuss a Rocha fight,” De La Hoya said. “I think it’s a big possibility. He’s number three in the world. Rocha versus Crawford, who knows.”

Rocha is keen on the idea.

“I’m ready for the big names,” he said. “Errol Spence doesn’t want to fight Crawford for some reason. He’s fighting Thurman. I’m next in the WBO, I want Crawford next.”