"The Towering Inferno" Sebastian Fundora found himself in a blaze against Erickson Lubin on Saturday night but brought enough fire to remain undefeated.
The six-foot-five Fundora scored a knockdown in the second round and Lubin returned the favor in the seventh. However, Fundora would rally enough to overwhelm Lubin in a lopsided ninth paving the way for Lubin's corner to stop the fight after the round. With the win at the Virgin Hotels Las Vegas, Fundora (19-0-1, 13 KOs) remains undefeated and captured the WBC interim junior middleweight title. He now inches closer to facing the winner of the May 14th undisputed 154-pound championship rematch between Jermell Charlo and Brian Castaño.
“I think this was probably my best performance ever,” said Fundora in victory. “It was a back-and-forth fight. He really brought his hammer but I decided to bring my drill. The uppercut was landing like no other. The uppercut is my lucky punch."
Fundora earned the spot by striking first Saturday night. A barrage of punches, capped by a crunching uppercut, dropped Lubin with a thud during the second round as Fundora jumped up in jubilation.
But Lubin would battle back in the fire fight to score his own knockdown, which came on a monstrous left hook across the jaw, forcing Fundora to take a knee for the first time in his career.
“I got hit with a good punch and I didn’t feel like I needed to get hit again, so I took a knee to get a little breather in and I recovered,” Fundora said.
It was a smart move as Fundora would recover his bearings enough to drown Lubin out with a barrage of punches in the ninth round, prompting Lubin's trainer Kevin Cunningham to stop the bout following the frame.