Errol Spence Jr. was apoplectic as Terence Crawford abruptly left the negotiating tables. Although the pair was ostensibly close to facing off for all of the welterweight marbles, talks stalled in the 11th hour.

Crawford, after shredding Team Spence for what he described as flippant negotiations, opted to take on David Avanesyan. To the surprise of absolutely no one, the 35-year-old starched his man during their December 10th showdown, winning via 10th-round stoppage.

With Spence placing all of his eggs in one basket, he’s now been forced to hit the reset button. Regardless of his next decision, Spence (28-0, 22 KOs) has promised his adoring fans that fighting Crawford is still number one on his agenda.

Shawn Porter, a former two-time titlist that has shared the ring with both Spence and Crawford, has thrown on his thinking cap. In his view, Spence will make just one more appearance at 147 pounds before making the trek seven pounds north.

“I think it’s gonna be Keith (Thurman) and then I can see him moving up,” said Porter during an interview with BoxingScene.com.

Based on the recent news, Spence's contest with Thurman is likely to take place above the welterweight limit and none of Spence's belts will be at stake. However, it's not clear if Spence will return to welterweight or make a full move to 154. 

Thurman has been out of the ring since a victory over Mario Barrios in February of 2022.

Porter is convinced that Spence's days at 147 pounds will come to an end in 2023. However, in spite of Spence likely campaigning as a full-fledged junior middleweight in the immediate future, Porter is under the impression that Crawford (39-0, 30 KOs) will join him in his newly entered weight class.

“I honestly expect Terence and Errol to fight at 154 pounds.”

Although fans would seemingly jump for joy, their mouthwatering bout would lose a bit of historical significance. But while an undisputed showdown would no longer be on the cards at 154 pounds, Porter concludes that the belts would be extraneous in a matchup between two pound-for-pound luminaries.

“The belts don’t matter. No disrespect but the belts don’t matter.”