Written by Eóin Kennedy
This weekend will be a significant one in the world of boxing with world titles on the line on one side of the Atlantic, and championship contenders fighting one another on the other side. On Saturday night in Las Vegas, Nevada, the WBO and WBC light-welterweight world titles will be contested in the headline fight between Tim Tszyu and Sebastian Fundora. In the undercard of that event, Rolly Romero will defend his WBA light-welterweight world title against Isaac Cruz. Boxxer have opted to make the most of the Easter weekend and have decided to hold their show, headlined by the British and Commonwealth heavyweight title fight between Fabio Wardley and Frazer Clarke, on Sunday evening in London, England. Two different nights of boxing to enjoy this weekend so let’s look ahead to these three big fights:
Tim Tszyu (C)* vs Sebastian Fundora – WBO and WBC Super-Welterweight World Championship
Originally Tim Tszyu was slated to defend his WBO world title against Keith Thurman, but a training injury has ruled Thurman out and the PBC promotion had to find a replacement at short notice. Usually when this situation arises fans are staring down the barrel of a stinker of a main event, but credit to Al Haymon’s outfit, they produced the goods with Fundora. Long, wiry and rangy, Fundora will go into this fight as underdog but his bizarre dimensions for this weight class always make his fights intriguing as he towers over his opponents, so much so it looks as if he’s fighting in the wrong division. But that height and reach advantage doesn’t always translate into success in boxing, just ask Fundora about his last fight. Brian Mendoza stunned Fundora with a devastating seventh round knockout. Until that loss fans had speculated whether Fundora was just too tall and awkward to be defeated at 154 pounds, but Mendoza proved even the tallest trees can be chopped down and that’s exactly what Tszyu will set out to do on Saturday night. The Australian reigning champion is on a great run of momentum having kept active against decent opposition, his last win came over Mendoza, as it happens, back in October. Tzsyu will be aware that Fundora is no slouch and that this is a legitimate world-title caliber fight, and therefore he won’t be likely to get carried away early on. Fundora would be insane not to try and utilize his physical attributes and attempt to keep the champion at the end of his jab for most of the twelve rounds if possible. The winner will likely be decided by who manages to impose their game plan on their opponent, and I think Tim Tszyu has the ability to do just that, and get the knockout.
Verdict: Tszyu – KO
*Tszyu is WBO world champion, WBC title is vacant and will also be contested on Saturday
Rolly Romero (C) vs Isaac Cruz – WBA Light-Welterweight World Championship
Rolly Romero became the WBA light-welterweight world champion in controversial circumstances last May when referee Tony Weeks, now infamously, stepped in too soon to stop the fight against Ismael Barroso. Barroso was left dumbfounded as to why the fight was stopped, Rolly was the new WBA champion. It’s taken almost a year for Rolly to defend his title due to injuries but he cannot be faulted for the level of difficulty he will fac in his first defense. Challenger Isaac Cruz is widely regarded as one of the top operators in the140 pound division, and despite losing in his one step up to the elite level against Gervonta Davis, he still managed to take that fight to the judges score cards, something only one other fighter has ever achieved against Davis in his 29-fight career. Rolly was essentially branded as the clown of the boxing world in the build up to his own fight with Davis, but beyond the extravagant persona, there is a decent fighter who does possess power that can hurt. Let’s not forget he is a world champion after all. Cruz is a teak-tough, small, compact type of fighter. He’ll look to dip down low and hurt Rolly with explosive attacks to both the body and head. Rolly may look to fight fire with fire against the game Mexican but I fear he won’t be able to keep him at bay over twelve rounds, and that Cruz will take his place as WBA world champion via knockout.
Verdict: Cruz KO
Fabio Wardley (C) vs Frazer Clarke – British and Commonwealth Heavyweight Championship
Boxxer’s Easter Sunday card in London is headlined by the tantalizing title battle between Wardley and Clarke. The two competitors’ journeys to this juncture could not have been more different. Champion Wardley took up boxing later in life and came to the sport through the white-collar scene, whereas challenger Clarke is a product of the famed amateur system in Britain and won bronze for his country at the 2020 Olympics in Tokyo. On paper you would think that a former Olympian would have no trouble dealing with a fighter that missed their formative years in the sport, but alas this fight has a different complexion. The standards of Clarke’s opponents since he turned professional have been poor and he has blamed this for his lackluster performances, but the reality is that he has really failed to get through the gears so far in his pro career. Wardley, on the other hand, may not have the same fundamental grounding that Clarke has, but in his short career he has demonstrated that he is good athlete and possesses plenty of power, and has also faced tougher challenges in the paid ranks than Saturday’s challenger. Given that Wardley has shown he can get up to speed faster, I expect him to build a clear points lead and retain his titles on the judge’s scorecards.
Verdict: Wardley PTS
