Terence Crawford’s management has asked for and been granted a 10-day extension by the WBO to continue talks with 154-lb champion Sebastian Fundora. They have until October 10th to negotiate a deal before a purse bid is ordered.
(Credit: Mark Robinson/Matchroom Boxing)
The WBO had already ordered Fundora-Crawford, but they needed more time. Crawford (41-0, 31 KOs) holds the WBO interim and WBA title and wants the fight. He’s had no success getting the title shot against unified super middleweight champion Canelo Alvarez. So, fighting Fundora is a good option for Crawford.
The WBO reports that Crawford’s team contacted them and asked for a 10-day extension on the negotiations on September 30th, and it was granted. “Sebastian Fundora’s promoter, Sampson Lewkowicz, ratified the petition by email, agreeing to the extension.”
If Crawford defeats WBC and WBO junior middleweight champion Fundora (21-1-1, 13 KOs), he’ll hold three of the four 154-lb titles. He would only need the IBF belt to become the undisputed champion. That would make Crawford a three-division world champion. He previously captured all four belts at 140 and 147.
Crawford won the WBA junior middleweight title on August 3rd, defeating champion Israil Madrimov by a narrow 12-round unanimous decision in a Riyadh Season event in Los Angeles. That was a fight that Crawford easily could have lost if Madrimov had fought more aggressively in rounds 10 through 12.
Fundora will fight a lot harder than Madrimov, and it could be a more difficult fight for the 37-year-old Crawford. The 6’6″ Fundora’s height, reach, and youth will make life difficult for Crawford. Fundora is 26, and coming off a 12 round split decision win over Tim Tszyu on March 30th in Las Vegas.
If Crawford can regain the form he showed against Errol Spence in 2023, he’s got a good chance of beating Fundora. However, Crawford looks older now, and he didn’t look anywhere near as good against Madrimov as he had against Spence or any of the other fighters he had fought during his career at 147, 140, and 135.
Crawford still looked puffy around the face during the Anthony Joshua vs. Daniel Dubois card on September 21st in London. Madrimov did some damage to Crawford.
A loss for Crawford against Fundora will end his hopes of getting a fight against Canelo. There isn’t much chance of that fight happening anyway, but a defeat against Fundora would be the final nail in Crawford’s hopes.
