The boxing world is eagerly awaiting Tim Tszyu and Sebastian Fundora to meet in a WBC and WBO 154-pound unification fight at the T-Mobile Arena on March 30… and there’s a bonus on the night of the fight. fight.
For an entire generation of fans, Jim Lampley was the voice of boxing when he called fights for more than three decades on HBO Sports, as well as the premium channel’s pay-per-view platform.
Lampley oversaw seismic moments in the sport, such as Buster Douglas KO 10 Mike Tyson, George Foreman KO 10 Michael Moorer, Felix Trinidad MD 12 Oscar De La Hoya, the entire Evander Holyfield-Riddick Bowe trilogy, and the four-part Manny Pacquiao-Rivalry between Juan Manuel Marquez.
But while his long-awaited return to boxing has been very well received, Lampley will not be calling the action on Saturday night. Instead, he will co-host a chat for viewers on PPV.com alongside award-winning journalist Lance Pugmire.
LOOK: Tszyu vs. Fundora live on PPV.com
Delighted to be back, Lampley hopes to see Tszyu trade blows with the dangerous Fundora, who replaced original opponent Keith Thurman on 12 days’ notice.
“Thurman was a known product at the highest level, and a known product who had been out of the ring, at least in terms of championship fights, for quite some time,” Lampley told The Jugo Mobile.
“He is being replaced by someone who is definitely in or close to the competitive mix in the 154-pound pision and is a very unconventional physical fighter. A 6-5, 154-pound wrestler… you don’t find many of those.”
As Lampley explained, Fundora (20-1-1, 13 KOs) is a world-class super welterweight. The 26-year-old left-hander is ranked number 4 by The Ring magazine (Tszyu is No. 1) and has wins over Jorge Cota (TKO 4), Sergio García (UD 12) and Erickson Lubin (TKO 9).
However, this is essentially a comeback fight for Fundora, who suffered a brutal knockout loss at the hands of Brian Mendoza last April.
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“That gives him great incentive and suggests that he will be much better focused upon returning this time than he was in the case against Mendoza. Styles make fights,” Lampley said on the positive side.
“I haven’t covered Mendoza, so I can only tell you what other people have told me about Fundora, which was, don’t focus on the Mendoza fight, and that this is a difficult fight for Tszyu.”
Regardless of the respect that Fundora deserves, the big favorite in the fight is Tszyu. The 27-year-old Australian has an unblemished record of 24-0 (17 KOs) and is improving all the time. The most notable victories have come against Mendoza (UD 12), Tony Harrison (TKO 9) and Terrell Gausha (UD 12).
“Tszyu can be a pound-for-pound contender,” Lampley offered when asked what the WBO champion’s ceiling is. “Tszyu can be classified as one of the best fighters in the world. He is skilled, he has artistry, he has an intelligent and educated boxing background and is committed to his conditioning and career.
“I see no reason why Tim Tszyu can’t become one of those half-dozen fighters who are somewhere in the discussion for pound-for-pound number one. But here he will have to overcome a more difficult test than originally planned.”
If Tszyu passes the test, the next challenge could be next. In the lead-up to Tszyu vs. Fundora, it emerged that WBO (super) welterweight champion and pound-for-pound king Terence Crawford had exercised his right to be classified as a mandatory challenger at the previous weight.
Crawford is pursuing Tszyu and was reportedly approached by his team for a fight late last year. Lampley sees “Bud” as the best pound-for-pound fighter in the world today, but hinted that the American switch-hitter could be testing his luck on the scales.
“Crawford is a natural welterweight,” Lampley said seriously. “We saw how tremendously dominant he was as a puncher against Errol Spence, fighting at 147 pounds. Would it have been like this in 154? We do not know.
“The layman says, ‘Oh, they only weigh seven pounds!’ The fighter says: ‘Oh my God… it’s Seven pounds!’ They are two different ways of looking at that blackbird. “I would have to be a lot further along in the preparation between Crawford and Tszyu before I knew which one had the advantage.”
Will Crawford vs. Tszyu in 2024? At least for now, Fundora is casting a giant shadow over those plans.
