Sebastian Fundora wants Terence Crawford for his next fight in what would be a three-belt unification clash if he agrees to it. WBC and WBO junior middleweight champion Fundora’s promoter, Sampson Lewkowicz, said on Saturday that he wants WBA champ Crawford (41-0, 31 KOs) for his fighter’s next contest, not Errol Spence.
Crawford would need to hold off on his hunt for a legacy fight against Canelo Alvarez for a match against Fundora to have a chance. Given the problems that Crawford had in his debut at junior middleweight against WBA champ Israil Madrimov on August 3rd, he may decide that it’s too risky for him to face the 6’6″ Fundora.
Crawford turned 37 on Saturday, and he didn’t look young, eating right hands all night against Madrimov. The year layoff from Crawford’s previous fight against Spence in July 2023 didn’t help matters, but he looked like an older fighter who didn’t have the same power or size to dominate as he’d done at 147.
If Crawford chooses to reject the Fundora fight, he’ll likely wait to see what happens with Canelo, and then maybe retire if he doesn’t get that match. Fundora would then defend his two belts against 34-year-old former unified welterweight champion Spence. That’s not a great fight, but it would still create a lot of interest from fans.
“I don’t see Crawford deciding that he’s going to go fight a big 6’6″, 154-pounder after struggling the way he did [against Israil Madrimov in his debut at 154 last August]. Really, he’s looking for Canelo,” said boxing expert Chris Algieri to Probox TV about his doubts about whether Terence Crawford will agree to fight unified junior middleweight champion Sebastian Fundora next.
“Getting up for a Fundora fight, I just don’t see Crawford doing it at this stage. I’m sticking with Canelo or Bust for Crawford because he’s looking for legacy-type money. It’s totally understood for what he’s done in his career.”
Crawford hasn’t done a lot of things in terms of beating great opposition. Yeah, he’s a former two-division world champion and has won titles in four weight classes, but his actual wins are marginal.
“In terms of Fundora saying he wants to fight [Crawford]. It doesn’t matter. He’s going to take whoever. Whoever they put in front of him, he’s going to fight him. He’s not in the position to pick and choose. From what it looks like, all signs point to Errol Spence,” said Algieri.
“I think Fundora would like to land the Crawford fight. It’s a big fight at 154 pounds, and it’s probably the biggest fight that can be made in the weight class,” said Paulie Malignaggi. “But I don’t think he’s in the position to decide what to do. He’s not a world champion that has that kind of elevated pedestal.”
Fundora would definitely like to fight Crawford, but he may not get the match because it’s not a clash that will pay Terence enough for him to take the risk.
