The calendar for the year in boxing 2018 is starting to flesh out a tiny bit.

The best – or second or third-best – boxer on the planet is two-division champion Terence Crawford and, but of course, he is atop many watch lists and we want to get a sense of when he’s gloving up for his inaugural 2018 scrap.

That will become clearer after Jeff Horn’s WBO 147-pound crown defense takes place in Australia, against Brit Gary Corcoran, on December 13. And Crawford will be real close, so he’ll get a close-up gander at with whom he’ll be tasked, adding to his scalps list. Yes, Crawford will head to Australia, with Team Top Rank, and sit ringside to watch Horn-Corcoran, says TR bossman Bob Arum. Depending on how Horn vs. Corcoran plays out, the promoter said we’d see that winner meet Crawford in March or April.

And, pray tell, where? Back to Nebraska for “Bud”? Or New York City again? “To be determined,” Arum answered. “If Horn wins, I’d expect the same crazy publicity (in his native land of Australia), along those lines, that we saw for him against (Manny) Pacquiao (last July). It would again be on ESPN and it would be very, very big, big enough to do in a big arena in Las Vegas. Horn has said his dream is to be in a main event on the big stage in Vegas. Terence’s fans from Nebraska are so avid, you’d get 5-to-6,000 from Nebraska to Vegas; I think.”

A programming note: You can watch Jeff Horn vs. Gary Corcoran on Wednesday, on the morning of December 13. “Our good friends at ESPN,” Arum said, will be showing Horn vs. Corcoran, live, at 6:15 a.m. ET, 3:15 a.m. on the West Coast.

So, either load up on caffeine before and make it an all-nighter…or set the alarm and get a strong pot percolating.

Follow Michael Woods on Twitter @Woodsy1069 and listen to the Fight Facts podcast, if you’d like, with Woodsy and Joe Santoliquito chopping it up.

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