Steve Bunce column: Errol Spence Jr v Terence Crawford a 'brilliant fight, but missing the stardust'

Spence (left) is the WBC, IBF and WBA' Super' welterweight champion, with Crawford (right) the WBA holder

Errol Spence Jr versus Terence Crawford is a brilliant fight. A spectacularly brilliant fight. But there is just something missing - a little bit of stardust, perhaps.

These two men have held world titles at welterweight for the past five or so years and are finally facing each other. The winner will stake his claim as the best in the division and maybe even the pound-for-pound star of world boxing.

But I have to be brutally honest - and this is by no means me knocking the contest - as great as it is, this is not as big as boxing purists may think.

And if you don't think there's something missing, then I'm convinced you're deceiving yourself. Sometimes we live in a boxing bubble.

This is not Sugar Ray Leonard v Thomas Hearns. This is not Floyd Mayweather v Manny Pacquiao, even though that fight happened years too late.

These two - personality wise - are not Roberto Duran, Oscar de la Hoya or even Ricky Hatton.

You've got two guys who have tried really hard to build the fight up in the past six weeks or so, but outside of that boxing bubble not many people will have heard of Crawford or Spence.

It's a ridiculous thing to say when you look at their records, but this could - in many ways - be a breakout fight for the winner to go and cross over into the mainstream.

Fury-Ngannou will generate more interest

Spence Jr (right) has won all 28 fights, with 22 knockouts

We talk about Crawford and Spence maybe not getting the recognition it deserves, you can make the same argument for a sensational match-up we had in Tokyo on Tuesday as Naoya Inoue beat Stephen Fulton to become a four-weight world champion.

You could say that was a generational event which too went under the radar. The reason is because boxing, right now, is peak event driven.

Tyson Fury v MMA fighter Francis Ngannou in October is the best crossover freak-fight circus event that's ever been a legal boxing match.

It's a 'genuine' fight in Saudi Arabia - in that it's boxing rules, they'll wear boxing gloves and they'll fight over boxing distance - but it's a total mismatch.

And that will generate so much more money than Spence v Crawford. It will gain more publicity than Spence v Crawford. And that's just the nature of the beast.

You just need to look at Tommy Fury against Jake Paul. It was enormous. It was the best eight-round novice fight in history, so to speak. That's what it was. Yet look at the interest that generated.

Think about just how big some of Mayweather's fights were. Some of them were not great spectacles, but they were enormous events. But it was all about Mayweather's stardust, to use that word again.

'Smarter' Crawford may just have the edge

Undefeated Crawford has won 39 pro fights, with 30 stoppages

In an ideal world, I'd like to have seen this fight two or three years ago, but I don't get the impression either of them are past their peak.

They might have reached their peak, but I don't see signs they're falling away.

You've got to really search for weaknesses in either fighter. When you speak to people that fought the pair or have done a lot of sparring with them, you hear all sorts of praise.

Crawford and Spence are both accurate, they're both smart, don't waste any punches, they're powerful, can hurt you, and they can open up fast and finish you off.

Perhaps Spence Jr can drop you quicker, but Crawford can break you down.

Spence has been a welterweight since around 2013 and at the same time Crawford was operating at lightweight or super-lightweight. But I don't think the size will be a factor.

I've seen them two of them together, and I've seen them when they're preparing for fights. I look at the two of them, and they're very similar.

I think it might come down to who's the smartest. Some people are convinced that's Spence but I think Crawford might be smarter.

The main unknown about this fight is who's got the most left in the tank. I've just got a feeling it might be Crawford.

But even though I'm favouring Crawford, I would be stunned if one of them walks away with this fight. I'd be absolutely amazed if there's one master.

Whoever wins this weekend, his next fight needs to be another massive welterweight showdown against either Jason 'Boots' Ennis or Virgil Ortiz Jr, two young stars chomping at the heels.

Beat one of those and Crawford or Spence can move up to light-middleweight and fight a champion in that division. All of the time, eyes on bigger prizes.

For the loser, perhaps this is the fight where he becomes an old man overnight, which can happen.

Steve Bunce was speaking to BBC Sport's Kal Sajad.