Tim Tszyu vs Sebastian Fundora Preview March 30th, 2024
Unbeaten Tim Tszyu of Australia will be putting his WBO Junior Middleweight Title on the line against Sebastian Fundora of West Palm Beach with the vacant WBC Belt also up for grabs this Saturday, March 30th. Tszyu was originally scheduled to meet former WBA Super World Welterweight Titleholder Keith Thurman but he had to withdraw due to an injury. The 12-rounder takes place in Las Vegas, Nevada and can be seen live in most nations on pay-per-view including Triller. Tzsyu last fought in October when he beat Brian Mendoza by a unanimous decision. Mendoza was also Fundora’s last opponent as they met in April with Mendoza trailing considerably on all three scorecards then scoring a sensational seventh-round knockout for the WBC Interim Junior Middleweight Title.
Tszyu vs Fundora Betting Odds
Here are the betting odds from online sportsbook BetOnline.ag (full review here).
- Sebastian Fundora +350
- Tim Tszyu -500
My Pick
The Tszyu name is well known in boxing as Tim is the son of former world champion Kostya Tszyu and the 29-year-old climbs into the ring with a perfect mark of 24-0 with 17 Ko’s. He stands just under 5-feet-9-inches tall with a 72-inch and possesses better-than-average power with an impressive current knockout ratio of 70.8 per cent but has gone the distance in three of his last five fights.
He’s boxed 129 rounds since making his pro debut in 2016 following a good amateur career and has also captured the interim WBA Oceania, WBO Asia Pacific, WBC Asian Boxing Council Continental, IBF Australasian, Commonwealth, WBO Global, and Australian Super Welterweight Titles since turning pro. Tszyu’s first step up in class came in August, 2020 when he stopped former world champion Jeff Horn in the seventh round.
He halted former world champion Tony Harrison in the ninth in last March to capture the Interim WBO Title and was elevated to full champion when Jermell Charlo was stripped of the belt when he recently fought Canelo Alvarez. Tszyu has also faced legitimate contenders in Carlos Occampo, Terrell Gausha and Takeshi Inoue as they both fought for world titles in the past and also has wins over the likes of Dennis Hogan, Wade Ryan, Steve Spark, Jack Brubaker, Ruben Webster, Larry Siwu, Denton Vassell, Joel Camilleri and the late Dwight Ritchie.
The 26-year-old Fundora is a bit of a freak of nature as the ‘Towering Inferno’ stands just over 6-feet-5-inches tall with an 80-inch reach. This gives the southpaw an eight-inch height advantage over Tszyu Ocampo as well as a 9.5-inch edge in reach. However, similar advantages over Brian Mendoza didn’t help him out. Fundora climbs into the ring with a near-perfect record of 20-1-1 with 13 Ko’s and has boxed 116 rounds since making his pro debut in 2016 following his amateur career.
Fundora also has better-than average power to go along with a pretty good chin as 65 per cent of his wins have come by stoppage. However, he has stopped just one of his last four opponents. His lone draw was a 10-round affair with Jamontay Clark in August, 2019 in a shot at the vacant WBC Youth Welterweight Title. So far he’s beaten the likes of Carlos Ocampo, Erickson Lubin, Donnie Marshall, Nathaniel Gallimore, Habib Ahmed, Jorge Cota and Garcia as a pro.
Prediction…
Tszyu isn’t quite at the same level as his famous his father but is getting there as he possesses plenty of power and speed in his fists. Fundora doesn’t use his size advantage at all as he likes to work on the inside and until getting caught by Mendoza with a tremendous punch, it’s worked well for him. It’s going to be interesting to see if Fundora works a little more from the outside now because of that loss or if he’ll stick to his guns and fight the way he always has. Tszyu was training for Keith Thurman, who stands just under 5-feet-10-inches tall so this late replacement isn’t going to be easy for him. In fact, the advantage could go to Fundora as he was originally scheduled to meet the 6-foot-tall Serhii Bohachuk this weekend. Fundora has plenty of power and this could be a rock’em sock’em battle for as long as it lasts as both boxers are easy enough to hit. This certainly isn’t an easy fight for Tszyu or Fundora and it’s not easy to predict either. I’m expecting a great fight but am giving a slight edge to Tzsyu as Fundora is a bit of a one-trick pony when it comes to style and tactics.
Tszyu is a bit more adaptable in the ring.
Play Tszyu -500 @ BetOnline.ag
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Sebastian Fundora betting • Tim Tszyu betting