Author: Sean Crose

Former world champion Keith “One Time” Thurman faced current junior middleweight world champion Sebastian Fundora on Saturday night at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas. At stake in the scheduled twelve rounds was Fundora’s WBC title, as well as Thurman’s future. After all, at the age of 37, colorful Thurman is already behind him with a record of 31-1. Whether the man would still be able to keep his word was the question that fueled the conversation heading into Saturday night. Fundora 23-1-1 entered the ring as a much taller and much younger fighter. But Thurman has always been a warrior of boundless self-confidence.

Fundora landed strongly early in the first. However, the rest of the round was quite close. Thurman wanted to move to the side while trying to get at his man. On the other hand, Fundora tried to stop Thurman with her long jab. Thurman was crushed again early in the second. Once again, however, Thurman recovered well. While both men landed, Fundora may have won the round simply because he landed more power shots. In the third game, the situation was still even. Thurman fought well, but Fundora seemed to be in control with his southpaw jab.

In the fourth, it was obvious that Fundora was taking control of the fight. He threw and landed powerful punches at a fairly quick pace. Thurman was able to fire himself, but not like Fundora. But that didn’t stop Thurman from landing a devastating blow early in the fifth round. Still, Fundora continued to plague the previous slate of titles for the remainder of the chapter. It actually looked like Thurman might be at the end of the line as the round came to an end, though he once again survived. At the beginning of the sixth round, Thurman was examined by the ring doctor, but was allowed to continue fighting.

Just before the end of the round, the referee wisely stepped in and stopped the beating. Thurman complained, but his face was a mask of blood and swelling. It would be foolish to let Thurman continue his career. “With all due respect to Keith,” Fundora said later. “That’s why I had to train so demanding.” Fundora then showed what attitude he entered the ring with. “You’re in my world,” he said simply. He may be a nice guy – and he really is – but Fundora is just not the type of person you want to date. Simply put, a teenage guy’s height and strength is a killer combination.

It wasn’t so much the victory that shocked fight fans. It was the way Fundora completely annihilated Thurman that raised eyebrows in the fighting world. “I think everyone will have a great fight plan going against this elevated training machine,” noted trainer and podcast creator Teddy Atlas in his live commentary shortly after the fight. Even though Fundora was the star of the night, it was demanding not to feel sorry for Thurman. No matter what anyone thought of him, he was one of the most talented, colorful and successful fighters of the last fifteen years.

The truth is, it’s demanding to watch a former star get legally crushed in the ring. If Thurman had lost by decision or even by stoppage at the end, it wouldn’t have been surprising. However, Thurman was beaten almost unconscious. And it wasn’t nice to watch. However, this does not detract from Fundora’s stunning performance. This man deserves all the recognition he receives. Saturday night was a signature moment for this guy. It was one of the most dominant performances in a high-stakes fight that I can remember. It will be intriguing to see where Fundora goes from here. Under the age of thirty, the future is dazzling.

Thurman, on the other hand, should seriously consider calling it a career. He did a great job in the ring, and he was thirty-seven years ancient when he was stopped by a much younger fighter. There is no shame in leaving at this point.