Fighters usually say that sparring and actually fighting are two different things.

For some, practicing without the bright lights on is pointless. In short, they need to be involved in real fights frequently.

Terence Crawford though, is of the belief that both sparring and a real fight go hand in hand.

"I don’t believe in that," Crawford told Andre Ward on All The Smoke Fight when asked about ring rust. “Some people do, I don’t. I think you get your sharpness from sparring and in the gym. If you're sharp in the gym, you're gonna be sharp in the fight."

Since 2020, the 38-year-old has fought just once a year. While that schedule doesn’t work well for most, Crawford’s inactivity hasn’t bothered him one bit.

Last month, the Omaha native became the sport's first male three-division undisputed world champion after outpointing long-reigning super middleweight king Canelo Alvarez.

On that particular night at Allegiant Stadium in Las Vegas, Crawford (42-0, 31 KOs) looked as smooth as ever, despite ending a 13-month absence of inactivity to do so.

He isn't sure how much longer he’ll continue to fight, but the pound-for-pound star knows the end is near. For those hoping to see a little more activity from him before hanging up his gloves and walking away, they can think again.

"Me being in the game for so long, your body needs rest," Crawford continued. "When you having camp after camp, you're constantly tearing down your body. I'm giving my body the proper time it needs to recover."