Vergil Ortiz Jr. wants everyone to treat Keith Thurman like a live dog ahead of their December 5 matchup, yet cracked wise about Sebastian Fundora’s towering reach along the trail. Joking around will not scrub away the harsh reality of that loss. Thurman looked completely spent against Fundora, leaving Ortiz to convince paying customers that a victory here actually counts for something meaningful.
Here lies the messy reality of selling this event. Ortiz must puff up Thurman because blasting out a shot fighter earns him zero credit.
“People are overlooking Thurman because he got stopped by a world champion who can tie his shoes standing up,” Ortiz remarked during promotional duties.
Fundora’s freakish height definitely created problems. The sixth-round stoppage proved Thurman lacked answers once his punches fell short. He absorbed steady damage with zero response.
His prior appearance, a third-round stoppage over Brock Jarvis, provided a highlight reel against soft opposition. It never proved the former unified champion could still hang with the division’s best, which made the harsh lesson against Fundora predictable.
The sport leans on this familiar strategy. Promoters match a surging contender against a faded name coasting on reputation. The veteran cashes a check on past glory, and the rising star gets a marquee notch on his resume. Fans see right through it.
“I just want to be in exciting fights. That’s the point of boxing. I want to be remembered as a guy who never said no to a fight,” Ortiz stated.
Taking every challenge is commendable, but that attitude fails to justify Thurman as pay-per-view headliner material. Crowds clamoring for clashes with Jaron Ennis or Fundora get handed a guy Fundora already battered into submission.
“I don’t go in with the mentality to get someone out right away. I’ll feel him out and download information. Obviously I’m familiar with Thurman, but we’re not gonna take anyone lightly,” Ortiz explained.
Ortiz walks right into a classic situation. Score a swift knockout, and critics declare Thurman washed up. Grind out a distance win, and people will point out Fundora did the job much faster.
Thurman desperately needed an honest tune-up to give this clash real credibility. Without that foundation, Ortiz is left doing all the heavy lifting at the podium.
