Fundora forces Tszyu to quit in rematch

Sebastian Fundora forced Tim Tszyu to quit in their rematch.

Sebastian Fundora forced Tim Tszyu to quit in tonight’s rematch, retaining his WBC super welterweight title with a TKO after seven rounds of high-intensity action.

This isn’t any exaggeration, either, to say that Tszyu quit. Tszyu himself said it as much in his post-fight interview.

“(Fundora’s) one tough motherfucker,” Tszyu said. “I tried to give it everything, but I just couldn’t do it. Victory belongs to Sebastian Fundora, the best 154 lb fighter on the planet right now. He was just the better man, he’s very hard to land (against), he’s tall as fuck, and sometimes I felt like I was shadow-boxing myself. It is what it is. Congratulations to Fundora and his team.”

Tszyu (25-3, 18 KO) had arguably had his best round in the seventh, but he also got caught with a handful of hard, clean shots right toward the end of the frame, and when the bell sounded, he just looked mentally beaten. From an outside perspective, Tszyu looked like a man who knew he’d thrown all he could throw at Fundora, and he simply hadn’t made the dent he needed.

Tszyu did get knocked down in the first round, but got up and fought on, battling hard until he gave it up. It’s the third loss in four fights for the Aussie ex-titlist, the last two of them by stoppage.

Fundora (23-1-1, 15 KO) has certainly staked his claim as the world’s best 154 lb fighter, and says he’s still making improvements to maximize his height advantage.

“I felt like I’m obviously the bigger guy, everyone’s calling me a (weight) bully, so you know what, let’s start bullying these guys,” Fundora said. “The first time we fought, I came off a loss, so maybe my mentality wasn’t there. But coming into this fight, I was a champion. I’d been there with him already.”

Fundora vs Tszyu 2 highlights