WBC junior middleweight champion Sebastian Fundora and Keith Thurman will headline on PBC on Prime Video PPV on October 25th at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas, Nevada.
The Pay-Per-View Controversy
Despite having fought just twice in six years, former WBA and WBC welterweight champion ‘One Time’ Thurman (31-1, 23 KOs) will be in the main event on pay-per-view against Fundora (23-1-1, 15 KOs). It’s a questionable move to place this fight on PPV because the 36-year-old Thurman hasn’t been active enough for younger fans to know who he is.
It should be free because it’s not a clash that resonates with fans of this era. If you could take Fundora back to 2016 when Thurman was still active, it might interest fans. Not now, though.
Keith Thurman’s Recent Inactivity
- Brock Jarvis: March 2025
- Mario Barrios: February 2022
Thurman didn’t fight in 2020, 2021, 2023, or 2024. Here is getting a world title shot on pay-per-view against WBC 154-lb champion Fundora after only one fight in the division, the non-ranked Brock Jarvis.
For young fans, Keith is just a bald guy on YouTube who reminisces about his past as a fighter from many years ago. It’s weird listening to him, like he’s some old man who talks about his past life. It’s so boring.
Is Fundora a True PPV Star?
Fundora isn’t a pay-per-view fighter. He’s never beaten anyone good enough to be fighting on pay-per-view, unless one considers the shell of Tim Tszyu as a big name.
Mike Coppinger revealed the news of the Fundora-Thurman fight headlining on October 25th on PBC on Prime PPV. Thurman’s only fight in the last three years was against Australian fighter Brock Jarvis, who isn’t a top-tier contender. He’s just some Aussie guy with a resume full of wins over tomato cans, and who was knocked out in one round by Liam Paro in 2022. It took Thurman three rounds to stop Jarvis last March.
Overlooked Contenders in the WBC Rankings
Fans on social media are criticizing Fundora defending against the fossil Thurman, who is jumping ahead of these active top-tier WBC-ranked contenders:
– Israil Madrimov
– Jaron Ennis
– Serhii Bohachuk
– Jesus Ramos
– Erickson Lubin
– Charles Conwell
Thurman likely wouldn’t be competitive against any of those fighters, as they’re a lot younger, hit harder, and bigger than him. It’s pathetic that he’s getting a world title shot with just two fights under his belt since 2019. Putting the contest on PPV makes it even worse.
Last Updated on 08/14/2025
Read the full article here