WBC and WBO junior middleweight champion Sebastian Fundora 21-1-1 (13) says that he always expected to have to walk through fire to defeat Tim Tszyu 24-1 (17).
In a bloody brawl that saw both boxers stain the canvas with their claret, it was six-foot-six southpaw Fundora who eventually prevailed by split decision with score of 116-112, 115-113 and 112-116 at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada on Saturday night.
The 26-year-old Californian stepped in as a late replacement for Keith Thurman to face the formidable Tszyu, boxing a composed fight under pressure to take the victory and collect the belts.
Australian Tszyu, 29, was cut on the top of the end late in the second round, while Fundora had his nose bloodied midway through the fight.
The blood-smeared faces of the combatants only added to the drama of what was a high level boxing match.
“Have you seen my fights before?” Fundora asked after the victory. “My fights are always bloody. I think maybe this was a Fight of the Year candidate. It was a tough fight, a tough opponent for us in Tim Tszyu.
“With this fight, we really showed our Mexican blood, inside and out, but we’re really grateful for all the fans that came out and all the Mexican crowd that came to support us.
“We were very lucky to have it – it was two weeks’ notice – but they came and supported us like they supported the co-main event winner and new 140-pound champion Isaac ‘Pitbull’ Cruz and I’m just happy that all the Mexicans won today. Let’s continue to do it.”
Tszyu reflected on the amount of blood that continued to run into his left eye for the last 10 rounds of the contest.
“It was like a fountain… All this blood coming,” Tszyu said, before adding: “I am who I am, a warrior. A little bit of blood? It’s just that.
“My eyesight was gone. I literally couldn’t see out of my eyes, nonstop. Physically, I felt all right. You’re fighting with blurred vision… it’s not ideal. Especially against Fundora.”
Fundora felt the effects of the blood too from his busted up nose.
”I thought to myself, ‘Hey, it’s kinda sticky in here’,” Fundora said. “I’ve been through stuff like that. Since I’ve been eight years old, I used to bleed from my nose all the time. Blood’s nothing crazy for me until they draw it from my arm. We fight on the stage. We’re gladiators.”
There remains some dispute over whether Fundora is contractually obliged to offer Tszyu an immediate rematch.
Fundora’s promoter Sampson Lewkowicz was adamant they could pursue other options, including big money fights against Terence ‘Bud’ Crawford 40-1 (31) and Errol ‘The Truth’ Spence Jr 28-1 (22).
“We need to maximise the most money for the fighter (by pursuing Spence first). I think (Fundora) deserves it,” Lewkowicz said.
