The WBO has noted that Errol Spence Jnr remains unranked at junior middleweight – and that a fight with Sebastian Fundora might solely be for Fundora’s WBC title, and could lead to Fundora being stripped of the WBO belt.
“Fundora must comply with WBO rules and fight an active, world-rated contender,” Gustavo Olivieri, at the time the WBO’s lead attorney, said in an interview with BoxingScene,com. He soon added: “Team Spence or his representatives can certainly petition and argue the reasons as to why he is deserving of world-rating consideration and request an opportunity [to be ranked].”
That’s exactly what Team Spence did during a meeting of the WBO ratings committee at the sanctioning body’s convention in Puerto Rico. Phil Weiss of TGB Promotions, which works closely with Premier Boxing Champions on its events, made the case for Spence, who is a PBC fighter. Fundora is also with PBC.
Such a fight would be Spence’s first appearance since his ninth-round technical knockout loss to Terence Crawford in a fight in July 2023 for the undisputed welterweight championship.
“There’s been a lot said about Spence recently,” Weiss said. “A lot of insults and disparagements and, frankly, a little hate. Unfortunately that’s a symptom I think of humanity, where we tend to enjoy and even revel in unfortunate situations that heroes get faced with. It’s rarely justified, and in the case of Spence in particular, it’s unwarranted. No matter how you slice it, in his illustrious career, Spence has still only lost once, barely a year ago, and he lost to maybe the best fighter in the world.
“Not only is it far from a career-ending event, but certainly not in any way, shape or form should it be considered an obituary. Speaking of which, Spence has come back from a near-death experience [a frightening car crash in 2019 in which he was thrown from his vehicle] to get back into the game and he won. He’s overcome injuries and his doubters, and he’s proven his worth to the sport.
“He was and he remains a household name – not just in boxing, but unlike many (if not most) boxers, outside of boxing, he was and he remains a top draw, and he’s a fan favorite, no doubt about it. Now he’s healthy and he’s ready to fight. And who doesn’t love a comeback story and all the emotions and excitement that those types of things conjure up? And after all, isn’t that what boxing is all about? Isn’t that at the core of boxing and what inspires boxing and is in the best interest of boxing?”
Weiss requested that Spence, who is rated first by the WBC but unranked by the other sanctioning bodies, be inserted by the WBO in the 10th position.
“I guarantee, and I think we all agree, that Spence versus Fundora will be a great fight and will absolutely be in the best interests of boxing,” Weiss said.
Olivieri, who has just been elected the WBO’s new president, welcomed Weiss’ appeal.
“I couldn’t agree with you more, my friend,” Olivieri said. “He’s got the merits. His only loss is against boxing’s pound-for-pound king, Crawford. We will certainly consider your petition, refer it to the [ratings] committee, and they will proceed accordingly. I like that fight, Fundora and Spence for the WBO and WBC championship.
“I think you have a strong argument on behalf of Errol. We have to do what’s best for the boxers as well. Let’s consider. Let’s assess the situation, and we’ll make a ruling in the next couple of weeks regarding this matter.”
The 34-year-old Spence is 28-1 (22 KOs).
Fundora, who is 26 years old, has a record of 21-1-1 (13 KOs). He has not fought since March, when he stepped in as a late replacement opponent and took a split decision over Tim Tszyu, which earned him the WBO and vacant WBC titles.
David Greisman, who has covered boxing since 2004, is on Twitter @FightingWords2 and @UnitedBoxingPod. He is the co-host of the United Boxing Podcast. David’s book, “Fighting Words: The Heart and Heartbreak of Boxing,” is available on Amazon.
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