Sebastian Fundora defends his WBC super welterweight crown against a former welterweight world champ in Keith ‘One Time’ Thurman on March 28th. When referencing a prior quote centred on how this fight re-booking from injury ended up being a blessing as we’re days out from this PBC PPV that goes live on Prime Video, Sebastian Fundora said [via Bowks Talking Bouts],
“As of right now, we’re doing good. You know, we’re ready to fight… But you know, things happen in the sport. Injuries happen in sports all the time. So, something like that wasn’t a surprise. I mean, it did affect them, affect us, of course, but you know, we had time to recover. There was time to recover and we’re still fighting the same guy. So it wasn’t too bad of a; or too big of a deal for me.”
For ‘The Towering Inferno’, this will be his first time headlining at the MGM Grand Garden Arena, with it being his third time fighting there. After mentioning how this moment, topping the marquee at the famed Las Vegas venue, would seem like a good feather to have in his cap, Sebastian Fundora stated [via Bowks Talking Bouts],
“Oh yeah, definitely. Definitely. The event itself is big. You know, it’s a big milestone for me. A pay-per-view fight, I’m headlining a pay-per-view fight versus a big name. So it’s a blessing, but to look at it being rescheduled to worry about that wasn’t too much of a deal for me because, you know, again, injuries happen. If I’m going to dwell on those things, it’s probably going to affect my mind too much and and that’s something I don’t want.”
Sebastian Fundora: block out the noise, remain champ, and become a star with keith thurman win
Sebastian Fundora is an understated, soft-spoken guy compared to the louder public persona of Keith Thurman, who is certainly one for the verbal histrionics.
Entering the fight as the reigning and defending titleholder with that more understated delivery, when asked how much of Thurman’s bombast on the mic resonates as mind games to counteract or if the title challenger’s tactics serve the master of carrying a certain amount of the fight promotion, Sebastian Fundora quipped [via Bowks Talking Bouts],
“Well, Keith Thurman’s Keith Thurman. Keith Thurman, we all know Keith Thurman as a talker. Of course he can back it up but that’s what we remember him [as]. That’s what I remember watching him as growing up. A big talker. Yelling ‘one time’ knocking these guys out. So it’s good promo for the fight, yeah. But I think that’s also just his attitude, you know? That’s just how he is. For me, it doesn’t really bother me.”
“I just see him as another fighter. I have to look at him like that. Stepping into the ring, I was a fan. I am a fan still, actually. I think he’s a future Hall of Famer, but all that’s just noise to me. Just, I’m here as a champion. I plan on remaining a champion as well.”
Mentioning that Thurman was someone the champ watched growing up and now testing skills against him, it seems like Fundora is at a point in his career where there’s a maturation piece. A key juncture where the WBC titleholder is dispatching very top-level guys and imposing his will on them in a particular way.
When asked for his thoughts on that maturation piece of his current career and if he has ascended to that next level/ putting things into another gear, Fundora said [via Bowks Talking Bouts],
“Yes, I definitely think [that], especially with this fight, I feel like this is a star level, like a superstar level. Well, with this fight, how we execute it, how we win this fight, this will put us on a different level in boxing. Cuz there’s championship level and that could be the top for a lot of fighters, but then there’s the superstar level.”
“Where everybody wants to see you. Everybody wants to come to your fight. I think with this fight, that definitely will tell us where we’re at.”
