The MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas hosted not only Manny Pacquiao’s return to the ring last night, but also the bout between American Sebastian Fundora (23-1-1, 15 KOs) and Australian Tim Tszyu (25-3-0, 18 KOs), contested for the WBC super welterweight world title.
A rematch of their March 2024 fight, which Fundora had won by split decision, the first encounter had been marred by a cut on Tim’s head caused by an accidental elbow from Fundora. The cut and the resulting heavy bleeding had impaired Tszyu’s vision for much of the fight, making Fundora’s victory feel inconclusive.
As was only right, the two met again for a bout that had the feel of a final verdict.
This time, it was Fundora who won again—decisively—scoring a TKO in the 7th round. The Australian was wisely pulled out by his corner after they assessed his condition. Tszyu looked clearly worn out, with a vacant expression after seven rounds of absorbing Fundora’s punches.
The two entered the fight with likely opposite mindsets. Fundora, standing at an imposing 6’6″, was seeking a clear and undeniable win, with no asterisks—something that would validate his recent performances against Tszyu and Brian Mendoza.
Tim’s motivations were likely more complex. The son of the great Kostya Tszyu still struggles to shake off the heavy shadow of his father (whose accomplishments, to be fair, he is unlikely to match). He came into the fight after a brutal defeat to Bakhram Murtazaliev—a true boogeyman in the division—in which he had been knocked down four times and saved only by his corner throwing in the towel. That loss came just a few months after a solid performance against Joseph Spencer, where he had scored a confidence-boosting fourth-round TKO.
Stylistically, an intense clash at center ring was expected. Tim is a pressure fighter with a solid left hook and generally good punching power. However, he’s defensively vulnerable, with a tendency to be stiff in the torso, not very mobile, and to leave his face exposed when throwing punches. On the other side, the southpaw Fundora possesses a strong, hammering jab launched from a towering height—not just for the division—and uses it effectively to manage range. Still, despite this reach advantage, Fundora likes to fight on the inside, especially after asserting control at mid-ring, and often works with uppercuts, one of his favored weapons. However, he is vulnerable to body shots—unsurprisingly given his height—and is not the fastest in execution: good timing can cause him trouble. He also has a tendency to leave his head exposed, making him susceptible to counters.
The two fighters delivered exactly what was expected of them. But this time, Fundora stepped into the ring with a noticeably more determined attitude.
Already in the first round, the two clashed: Tim’s lead left hook collided with the southpaw Fundora’s rear left hook. The sheer impact speed of the towering American’s punch was immediately evident and sent Tszyu to the canvas. Fundora tried to capitalize on it right away but without rushing things, allowing Tszyu to make it back to his corner to catch his breath.
In the following round, Fundora, eager to take control, launched himself at Tim, pushed him against the ropes, and overwhelmed him with a prolonged and suffocating combination, clearly exposing the Australian’s moment of serious trouble. Tszyu tried to fight back with wide hooks, exploiting Fundora’s bad habit of leaving his face completely exposed, but his lack of accuracy allowed the reigning champion to absorb the punches without issue. A sharp left hook from Tim forced Fundora to stay alert, but he kept his composure and didn’t overextend after that barrage of punches.
The two kept engaging, with Fundora the more aggressive one, constantly trying to trap his opponent on the ropes. Tim relied on his left hook, which landed frequently, but Fundora’s punches consistently looked heavier and more damaging—especially his straight left and his uppercuts, which have become his trademark.
It was incredibly hard for Tim to find the right distance to work from: at long range, Fundora could control everything at will from his 6’6″ height, but even at mid-to-close range, he was effective—he even seemed perfectly comfortable there despite his long limbs.
Every time he was pushed to the ropes, Tim showed all his vulnerabilities—not just in terms of punch resistance, but also his lack of clarity when it came to dodging shots or throwing counters. He often just stood there at Fundora’s mercy.
In the fourth round, after enduring another onslaught from his rival, Tim managed to escape the corner and reclaim the center of the ring. The two exchanged many punches. But Fundora’s straight shots and uppercuts clearly had a different kind of impact compared to Tim’s occasional left hook and straight right. Fundora absorbed Tim’s blows with relative ease, which allowed him to keep pressing forward with a continuous demolition job. In contrast, Tim kept throwing the same two punches—left hook and straight right—but sporadically. The difference in work rate was striking.
In the seventh round, once again trapped against the ropes, utterly exhausted and at Fundora’s mercy, Tim made one last stand with a big right hook followed shortly by a left. But once again, Sebastian absorbed them without any visible trouble, pressed on as if nothing had happened, and bombarded his helpless opponent with more hooks and uppercuts.
Shattered and completely defenseless, Tszyu returned to his corner, and fortunately, his team stopped the fight, sparing him a beating that was getting out of hand.
In the post-fight interviews, one simple sentence from Tim summed up all his frustration:
“I couldn’t do it.”
An impressive performance from Fundora, who will now need to raise the bar as he prepares for tougher challenges ahead—against the top contenders in what is currently one of the most intriguing divisions in boxing. Awaiting him are the likes of Vergil Ortiz Jr., Bakhram Murtazaliev, Israil Madrimov, Serhii Bohachuk, and the returning Keith Thurman.