🥊 Errol Spence Jr.‘s Improbable Return

Following a terrifying car accident that nearly cost him his life, Errol Spence Jr. is set to return to the ring. [View in browser]( [FOX SPORTS INSIDER WITH MARTIN ROGERS] In today’s FOX Sports Insider: Errol Spence Jr.‘s battle with Danny Garcia on Saturday has a tale beyond the tale of the tape ... we take a look at the top 99 college hoops recruits in the class of 2021 ... and we are treated to the third edition of the FOX Sports College Basketball Newsletter with Mark Titus. Errol Spence Jr. occasionally watches the video, the same footage that millions of others have seen, and he does the same thing as pretty much everyone else. As a security camera clip from a Dallas sports bar (called Knockout, can you believe it?) catches the terrifying image of a white Ferrari – Spence Jr.'s Ferrari – cartwheeling and disintegrating as it careened down Riverfront Boulevard in the middle of the night, the WBC and IBF welterweight champ can’t stop himself. He starts the video up again, views it once more, and shakes his head in disbelief as to how he managed to emerge, alive and relatively unscathed. And now, 14 months later, ready to fight again. [Make sure to order Saturday's epic fight card right now!]( [STORY IMAGE 1] They call boxing the sweet science, but that term was coined in the early 1800s by a writer who doubled as a chronicler of royal family adultery scandals and it might not apply so closely anymore. The modern version of the fight game remains so compelling because of the inherent promise that you might see a spectacular and devastating outcome and no matter how dexterous the fighters or how dazzling their footwork, it is still the knockouts that make the highlight reels. Meanwhile, accompanying it all are the subplots and twists, the extra narratives boxing relies on to push its most important fights. At times they come with a layer of darkness, which only makes them more guiltily fascinating. Spence Jr.'s battle with Danny Garcia on Saturday, with those two belts at stake, has a tale beyond the tale of the tape. The highly-anticipated fight will take place at AT&T Stadium in Spence Jr.'s hometown of Dallas, TX, [exclusively on FOX Sports pay-per-view](. [STORY IMAGE 2] “How do you predict how someone returns from a car crash?” asks Shawn Porter, the former WBC welterweight champion, FOX Boxing analyst and one of only two men to have fought Garcia (whom he beat in 2018) and Spence Jr. (he lost a split decision last September). “Everyone is looking to see what Spence can do after what happened. The crash was so spectacular and scary. He says he feels good, but a boxer is never going to admit weakness before a big fight. That’s part of what makes it so interesting.” Porter is a straight talker and when we spoke this week, he was wondering the same thing as the rest of the boxing community, even if it feels a little uncomfortable to do so. [STORY IMAGE 3] What happens when you take arguably the best pound-for-pound boxer in the world, see him survive a drastically terrifying accident that threw him from his vehicle and left the $300,000 Ferrari in pieces, then send him into combat against a former world champion with a point to prove? No one knows for certain whether Spence Jr. can be just as good as when he took his pro record to 26-0 against Porter, or whether the events of 2:47 a.m. on October 10 last year has sapped his powers in some way. “It leads to the great unknown,” The Athletic’s Lance Pugmire told me, via telephone. “Spence is the favorite but we don’t really know what we are comparing. Could his movement be affected, his stamina, his mental state?” [According to our FOX Bet insights, Spence Jr. is listed at -400 heading into Saturday's fight, while Garcia is at +250](. Spence Jr. has no memory of the accident, which came weeks after he beat Porter and with his stardom at its highest point. Given what happened, many were surprised that he would opt to take on a foe as tough as Garcia, whose two defeats, to Porter and Keith Thurman, were both narrow. Maybe after the remarkable good fortune of not breaking a single bone during the high-speed accident, Spence Jr. believes fate is smiling upon him. [STORY IMAGE 4] “I feel like for me to be able to walk and see my kids, to know my name, to be thrown out of a car and survive, I definitely feel it is a miracle,” Spence Jr. said. Looking forward, this contest will go a long way towards determining the immediate future of the welterweight division. It is a true, top level contest, a real showdown that follows on from an odd boxing weekend that saw the strange spectacle of Mike Tyson and Roy Jones Jr. going at it in an exhibition. A Spence Jr. victory could finally set up a meeting between him and fellow undefeated Terence Crawford, especially with Crawford’s relationship with promoter Bob Arum seemingly on shaky ground. Either way, Saturday will give us a clear indication if the horrific accident that could have cost Spence Jr. his life will cost him career momentum, or become a mere footnote in an otherwise triumphant rise to the top. [You can buy Spence Jr. vs. Garcia on FOX Sports pay-per-view today!]( [STORY IMAGE 5] Here’s what others have said ... Scott Christ, SB Nation: “We don’t know how Spence is going to look in the ring. He is saying the right things, he looks good in terms of his conditioning and all that, his interviews are the same as ever, really. But not only has he been out of the ring for 14 months, we just don’t know what physical or mental toll that crash really took on him until the bell sounds and we see him in action.” Chris Mannix, Sports Illustrated: “(Spence) sees life differently now. He’s still driven to be the best, still targeting world titles, still eager for a showdown with Crawford, a welterweight clash that ranks among the best fights in boxing. He still wants to fight. He just appreciates more everything that comes with it.” Calvin Watkins. Dallas Morning News: “Garcia is an underdog for a reason, but he’s never hid from a challenge such as the one Spence is presenting. It’s part of the reason he decided to fight Spence in his hometown. A Garcia upset would prove once again why he’s so dangerous to meet, but at the same time, it’s another reminder that one more loss could push him into a different category.” [IN OTHER WORDS] - Ja Morant is hoping to build off his first-year experiences in the NBA. [Marc J. Spears of The Undefeated]( explains why the Grizzlies’ rising star isn’t satisfied with just being the Rookie of the Year. - What names should fans be looking for when it comes to the future of basketball? [Sports Illustrated unveils]( the top 99 college hoops recruits in the class of 2021. - Last season, New Orleans Pelicans rookie Zion Williamson missed the first 44 games of the season while rehabbing his knee. [Mark Medina of USA Today]( explains how after a rough season, the Pelicans’ star is feeling good again. [THE INTERNET IS UNDEFEATED] [THE INTERNET IS UNDEFEATED]( The third edition of the FOX Sports College Basketball Newsletter with Mark Titus was released this week, and it is jam-packed with awesome content from top to bottom. Titus touches on a number of topics throughout the college hoops landscape, including artificial noise in arenas, Chris Mooney’s must-see mask, and everyone’s favorite college basketball official, Teddy Valentine. [You can subscribe to the weekly newsletter here]( [VIEWER'S GUIDE] Tennessee Tech at Xavier (FS1, 7 p.m. ET) Zach Freemantle and the Xavier Musketeers take on Keishawn Davidson and the Tennessee Tech Golden Eagles. Gonzaga vs. West Virginia (ESPN, 7 p.m. ET) Jalen Suggs and the No. 1-ranked Gonzaga Bulldogs go up against Miles McBride and the No. 11-ranked West Virginia Mountaineers. WWE NXT (USA, 8 p.m. ET) Will Shotzi Blackheart or Raquel Gonzalez claim the advantage for their team ahead of WarGames? Find out on WWE NXT. [BET OF THE DAY] [BET OF THE DAY]( Odds provided by [FOX Bet]( Errol Spence Jr. vs. Danny Garcia The much-anticipated Unified Welterweight Title fight between WBC champ Errol Spence Jr. and Danny Garcia is set to take place on Saturday at AT&T Stadium and [live on FOX Sports PPV](. Even better, fans have the chance to win $1,000 absolutely for free in the [FOX Super 6 PBC Challenge](. Here are the Super 6 PBC Challenges: - What will be the outcome of the Flores vs. Ramirez fight? - What will be the outcome of the Fundora vs. Cota fight? - What will be the outcome of the Lopez vs. Santana fight? - What round will the Spence Jr. vs. Garcia fight end? - How many total “punches landed” will there be in the Spence Jr. vs. Garcia fight? - What will be the outcome of the Spence Jr. vs. Garcia fight? [WHAT THEY SAID] “If you never know failure, you will never know success.” — Sugar Ray Leonard [FOLLOW FOX SPORTS] [Twitter]( [Facebook]( [YouTube]( [Instagram]( Download FOX Sports App: [Fire TV]( [Roku]( [Google Play]( [App Store]( [Fire TV]( [Roku]( [App Store]( [Google Play]( Also available on these devices: [fireTV | AppleTV | ROKU | Google Chromecast | XBOX ONE | SAMSUNG Smart TV] [fireTV | AppleTV | ROKU | Google Chromecast | XBOX ONE | SAMSUNG Smart TV] Trademark & Copyright Notice: ™ and © 2020 Fox Media LLC and FOX Sports Interactive Media, LLC. All rights reserved. Please do not reply to this message. If you do not wish to receive emails like this in the future, please [unsubscribe](. FOX Sports respects your privacy. Click [here]( to view our Privacy Policy. Fox.com Business & Legal Affairs - Manager Digital Media P.O. Box 900 Beverly Hills, California 90213-0900