Up and coming welterweight contender Errol Spence said that he will "merk" Keith Thurman after the reigning WBA (Regular) welterweight champion failed to impress fans and fellow boxers alike during his title defense against veteran Luis Collazo on Saturday at the USF Sundome in Tampa.

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According to Boxing News 24, Spence (17-0, 14 KOs) had published several posts on his social media site criticizing Thurman (26-0, 22 KOs), saying that the latter is "starting to run again" and that he will "merk that boy" in case they see each other in the ring.

There had been an issue between both fighters ever since Mayweather Promotions CEO Leonard Ellerbe called the Clearwater native to fight the 25-year-old southpaw from Desoto as part of Floyd Mayweather Jr.'s undercard on the pay-per-view king's supposed final show in Las Vegas on September.

Thurman instantly dismissed Ellerbe's invitation, telling that he only wanted to fight "top 15" boxers and no one else.

Curiously, Collazo is currently not ranked in any of the sports' foremost sanctioning bodies while Spence is at no. 8 in the WBA's welterweight list. It was obvious that Thurman does not know what he is talking about and after struggling to beat Collazo.

SB Nation's Bad Left Hook reported last month that Spence, who was Mayweather's sparring partner during his training versus Robert Guerrero in 2013, was asking to be set up against Thurman as part of the pound-for-pound champion's September farewell undercard.

Floyd reportedly agreed with the idea, but it was Thurman who rejected the request, preferring to fight "The Best Ever" himself and not any of his apprentices.

But after his lackluster performance against an over-the-hill, unranked fighter last Saturday, it seems like Thurman is not ready to face the pot-shooting five-division world champion.

In the fifth round of the title fight, Collazo caught Thurman with a hard right to the body which clearly bedazzled him. The champion barely survived the round and looked bad the rest of the way before an accidental head butt forced the referee to stop the fight before the 8th as the 34-year-old challenger said that he could not see from the cut.

I'll merk that boy

— Errol Spence (@ErrolSpenceJr) July 12, 2015

East Side Boxing's Jeff Sorby even said that "it looked pathetic after the fight when Thurman called out Floyd Mayweather Jr. and dared him and other top fighters to come take his 'O'."

If some fans think that Mayweather is a runner, then they would deem Thurman as a sprinter. His fighting style is not as entertaining as that of Floyd's who is great in the pocket even though he is constantly evading his opponent's punches.

TagsBoxing, Boxing 2015, Boxing News, Boxing News 2015, Boxing Rumors, Boxing Rumors 2015, Errol Spence, keith thurman, Floyd Mayweather Jr