Mike Tyson believes the current Pound for Pound King of Boxing is a star in his own right but that Terence Crawford can’t draw a huge crowd.

Boxing’s ‘Baddest Man’ says Crawford has struggled to nail down a significant fanbase and compared purses from today to the 1980s when many fighters in the P4P Top 50 had huge followings.

For the sport’s figurehead and number one ranked boxer today to not be able to garner the kind of attention Muhammad Ali, Sugar Ray Leonard, and he did during their careers continues to be a travesty for Tyson.

In an interview with tennis star Nick Kyrgios before his most recent fight in Los Angeles, Tyson accused Crawford of not being exciting enough.Kyrgios asked Tyson about the differences between his heyday and the current crop of talent ahead of a clash with Jake Paul on November 15.

Tyson replied: “You know, this is a funny question because of technology. More people are able to see fighters now than they did when I was fighting.

“When you see these fighters, we made a lot of money when we were fighting for our time. You see, these guys are fighting now. They’re not making ten if… I’m talking about the little guys, too – Sugar Ray Leonard, Roberto Duran, and Tommy Hearn. These small guys they’re not making money like these. These guys are making $15 million in the 80s. That’s like, well, I don’t know, that’s like $45 million now. Time changes and they are just not making [the same money].”

The New Yorker, 58, then used Crawford as his example.

“Look, Terence Crawford in the box, he’s fighting [fought] Errol Smith [Spence], and he’s the best fighter in the world, but he can’t draw 5,000 people. So, like yourself, it has more [to] have to come to [than just] being the best.

“You have to be entertaining. You have to be exciting. The best fighters in the world can’t, like I said, they could beat anybody. They could beat anybody in the world, but they can’t draw 5,000 tickets. You know, that’s because they’re not exciting.

“The way they make their money, because their opponents are very, like fame. They’ve got a big following [on social media]. But there are people; I’m sure they’re talented guys that could beat anybody, but they look like s***. Like watching grass grow, you know.”

At that point, Kyrgios interjected and said, “Yeah. Let’s not mention any names,” to try and keep Crawford out of the equation.

Crawford went on to top a Saudi Arabia showpiece in August against Israil Madrimov. Although the fight is portrayed to have sold well, there remain more questions than answers regarding how many people actually attended and how many paid for a ticket.

Reported Pay Per View sales also align perfectly with what Mike Tyson pointed out, leaving boxing in the strange situation it currently finds itself in regarding the recognized best on the planet.