Terence Crawford Inches Closer to Become 3-Division Undisputed Champion as Sebastian Fundora Receives WBO’s Ultimatum

The light middleweight division is gaining momentum. Early this month, the 154-pound weight class crowned new champions, setting off a chain reaction that could significantly impact the existing belt holders. Nearly a year after Brian Mendoza knocked him out, Sebastian Fundora stunned the boxing world by defeating tough-as-nails Tim Tszyu on the March 30 PBC-Amazon Prime card.

So he delivered the surprise part. Now he would have to go through the rounds of tests. Fundora is the WBC and WBO light middleweight champion. For those seeking title unification and, even further, undisputed glory, he is the obvious target. Given the fact that his dream fight with Canelo Alvarez is not happening, at least not anytime soon, Terence Crawford could fulfill the goal of becoming a three-division undisputed champion. Now, as the latest news reports reveal, the WBO has finally struck its hammer, instructing both Fundora and Crawford to reach a fight deal within the stipulated time.

Terence Crawford vs. Sebastian Fundora: Let’s Go!

“The WBO have now officially ordered Sebastian Fundora to defend his WBC and WBO super-welterweight world titles in a unification vs. Terence Crawford next,” read the update from Michael Benson. Apart from the WBA (super) title, ‘Bud’ Crawford holds the WBO’s interim title as well.

So the two champions have 30 days to conclude a fight agreement; otherwise, the match will proceed towards purse bids. Early this month, at the big Riyadh Season card in Los Angeles’ BMO Stadium, Terence Crawford marked his debut in the 154-pound weight class. He defeated Israil Madrimov unanimously and became a four-division world champion.

Now only the piece of the puzzle remains—title unification. Sebastian Fundora, on the other hand, had agreed to a title defense against Errol Spence Jr. Unfortunately, the whereabouts of the matchup still remain unconfirmed. Thus, it left the doors open for an eventual clash with Crawford.

Interestingly, the light middleweight division is all set for a further intriguing lineup in the future. One should not forget the presence of Vergil Ortiz Jr., who is WBC’s interim champion. Then there’s the much-anticipated return of Tim Tszyu.

The light middleweight: Boxing’s new powerhouse?

The Australian boxer had a clash set with Ortiz Jr. on the Crawford-Madrimov card. But the matchup had to be canceled after the physician confirmed that Tszyu needed more time to recuperate following the bloody duel with Sebastian Fundora. So, per available reports, Kostya Tszyu‘s son could be staking a claim at Bakhram Murtazaliev‘s IBF title. If he wins, then he will be in direct competition against the winner of the Crawford-Fundora clash.

Then who can forget? His Excellency Turki Alalshikh expressed strong support for the momentous fight between Vergil Ortiz Jr. and Terrance Crawford. “Ortiz, if he does the job, today we want to see him against Crawford,” he said in the lead-up to the Ortiz Jr. versus Serhii Bohachuk bout.

So all in all, the light middleweight division could well have become the cynosure of the boxing world. With so many stars, the weight class is now decked with some amazing edge-of-the-seat matchups for fans to see by this year’s end as well as the one following. One could only imagine if Jaron Ennis joined the fray, perhaps after unifying the welterweight titles.

What is your take? Should Terence Crawford wait for things to improve for that Canelo fight or close the unification deal with Fundora?