Chordale Booker isn’t the first person who’s sought to figure out how to deal with Sebastian Fundora’s height. But this is still new to Booker, who is listed at 5-foot-9 and is preparing for a 6-foot-5 opponent and any problems that the unified WBC/WBO junior middleweight titleholder could present.
“He has the most unique height and reach in the 154 [pound] division ever,” Booker said on a February 25 media conference call. “So [I’m] just bringing in tall sparring, practicing punching up higher, doing everything against people who are tall, punching higher on the bag – the double-end bag – put it up higher, making adjustments for just how tall he is because that’s an awkward motion of boxing, punching that high.”
Fundora-Booker will be the main event on March 22 at the Michelob Ultra Arena in Las Vegas. The card will stream on Amazon’s Prime Video.
“I’m not going in with just one game plan,” Booker added later. “I have multiple things that I’m going to try to do to come out victorious. I’m not going to just only put pressure. I’m not doing one thing or another. I’m doing whatever it takes to win.”
Fundora is not necessarily a puzzle that’s impossible to solve, as his record of 21-1-1 (13 KOs) indicates. He was held to a draw by Jamontay Clark in 2019 and, of much more recent vintage, was knocked out by Brian Mendoza in April 2023.
“Of course, I watched those fights,” said Booker, who is 23-1 (11 KOs). “I watched fights also where he’s done well, too, because I want to see what he’s good at, what shots he likes to throw. But I’m prepared to do whatever it takes to win. I’m not just happy to be here. Contrary to what most people believe, what the fans believe, they think I’m just here, I’m just showing up. I’m here to win. I’ve always been a guy who takes risks. That’s why I have a loss on my record, because I went up to 160, and I’m willing to fight anybody.”
Fundora was initially seeking to face former unified welterweight titleholder Errol Spence Jnr. When that fight fell apart, Booker was offered the bout.
“I was surprised when the call came in,” he said. “But once I gave it some more thought and that he was already getting ready for Errol Spence, I kind of felt a bit confident that me being a southpaw would actually now play in my favor. Usually me being a southpaw is a bad thing. And I think this time it actually worked out in my benefit.”
Booker suffered his lone loss in 2022, a first-round TKO against Austin “Ammo” Williams. The 33-year-old from Connecticut has won six in a row while splitting his time between junior middleweight and middleweight. Now he is weeks away from challenging for two title belts.
“This is a dream come true,” Booker said. “To be able to fight for a world title, it’s just amazing.”
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