Crawford: I’m going to shut him up

The long-simmering animosity between WBO welterweight champion Terence “Bud” Crawford and unbeaten Jose Benavidez Jr. spilled over into Wednesday’s media day, with the pair and their respective teams exchanging verbal haymakers.

Terence Crawford: “It’s been real since day one, since the fight has been announced. It ain’t been nothing but real. I’m just going to go out there and shut him up. That’s it. That’s all…once he feels them punches going upside his head, I don’t even know if he’s going to want to stand there next to me.”

Jose Benavidez Jr: “It’s time to show the world what I can do. I’ve been waiting for this my whole life. I am here. I am going to take over this city, and I am going to take his belt. I’m not scared. I don’t see anything special in him. I don’t know why everyone hypes him up so much.”

Crawford-Benavidez takes place Saturday at the CHI Health Center Omaha (formerly the CenturyLink Center) live on ESPN. Crawford’s four previous fights at the venue have drawn nearly 45,000 fans, and another packed house is expected.