Notebook: Lubin, Fundora to collide in attractive junior middleweight showdown

Russell-Magsayo card set; Conceicao relishes opportunity; Pacquiao retrospective; Quick hits; Show and tell

Dec 23, 2021

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The WBC on Tuesday approved southpaw junior middleweight contenders Erickson Lubin and Sebastian Fundora, both of whom have won elimination bouts, to meet for the organization’s interim 154-pound title, a source with knowledge of the approval told Fight Freaks Unite.

It was a move the WBC made to because three-belt titlist Jermell Charlo and WBO titleholder Brian Castano are due to meet in early 2022 for the undisputed championship in a rematch of their July 17 split draw, meaning Charlo won’t be making his mandatory defense against Lubin next.

The WBC will mandate the Charlo-Castano winner to meet the Lubin-Fundora winner.

Lubin-Fundora, while not signed yet, is likely to take place in March or April and air on Showtime, according to the source.

Lubin (24-1, 17 KOs), 26, of Orlando, Florida, has won six fights in a row since losing by first-round knockout challenging Charlo for his WBC title in 2017. Lubin is coming off an impressive sixth-round knockout of former unified titlist Jeison Rosario on June 26 in an elimination fight.

Acknowledging, my tweet breaking the news of the fight, Lubin responded with his own tweet, “See y’all soon.”

Fundora (18-0-1, 12 KOs), 23, of Coachella, California, who is known as “The Towering Inferno” because he is 6-foot-5, is coming off a unanimous decision win over Sergio Garcia in a Dec. 5 elimination bout.

Russell-Magsayo official

Premier Boxing Champions and Showtime on Wednesday announced the expected card headlined by WBC featherweight titlist Gary Russell Jr.’s mandatory defense against Mark Magsayo on Jan. 22 (9 p.m. ET). Showtime will air the tripleheader from the Borgata in Atlantic City, New Jersey

The chronically inactive Russell (31-1, 18 KOs), 33, of Capitol Heights, Maryland, will be making his sixth defense but fighting for the first time since February 2020, when he outpointed mandatory challenger Tugstsogt Nyambayar, who will appear in the opening bout.

“I’m ready and I’ve been waiting to display my talents and get back in the ring,” Russell said. “My opponent is one of Manny Pacquiao’s fighters, who is a legend in the sport and I’m pretty sure has a good eye for talent. I’m sure he signed Magsayo for a reason. I know that I’m facing a guy who’s willing to put it all on the line, with everything to gain and nothing to lose.”

Magsayo (23-0, 16 KOs), 26, of the Philippines, knocked out Julio Ceja in spectacular fashion in an Aug. 21 title eliminator to earn the title shot.

“I am very grateful for this opportunity to fight on Showtime for the WBC world title,” Magsayo said. “This is the fight that I want and have been working hard to get for years. I am going to come to win and to make the most of this chance. There is a reason Gary is a champion, just like there is a reason I became the mandatory challenger. This is going to be a great fight for me to show the world what Filipinos are made of. I’ve had a long road to get to this position and I will be fighting in honor of everyone who helped me get here.”

New York-based Russian junior welterweight Petros Ananyan (16-2-2, 7 KOs), 33, and Subriel Matias (17-1, 17 KOs), 29, of Puerto Rico, will meet in a scheduled 10-round rematch in the co-feature. Ananyan knocked Matias down and won a close, upset 10-round decision when they met in February 2020 on the Tyson Fury-Deontay Wilder II undercard.

“Everyone who knows me knows how much I wanted this rematch,” Matias said. “I’m very excited that I’m now getting that opportunity. That defeat slowed me down, but it was necessary for me to get to where I ultimately want to be. If I don’t beat Ananyan in this rematch, then I don’t deserve to be champion yet.”

Said Ananyan: “I want to thank my team for getting me this opportunity to showcase my skills on national television and to prove that my victory over Subriel Matias last year was no fluke. Like our first fight, the rematch will be a barnburner. I am back training in the United States, getting great sparring in camp and I feel very confident. Come Jan. 22, I will defeat Matias once again.”

In the 10-round featherweight opener, the Southern California-based Nyambayar (12-2, 9 KOs), 29, a 2012 Olympic silver medalist from Mongolia, will face Vic Pasillas.

Nyambayar is coming off a lopsided decision loss to Chris Colbert in an interim title bout in July,

“This is a great opportunity,” Nyambayar said. “I am prepared and excited to get back into the ring. I’m looking to deliver another great fight for the fans. This is going to be a battle from the first bell and I am confident I will come out victorious.”

Pasillas (16-1, 9 KOs), 29, of Los Angeles, is looking to rebound from an 11th-round knockout loss to Ra’eese Aleem in a January junior featherweight interim title bout.

“I have redemption on my mind and I’m ready to bounce back with a stellar performance when I step in the ring with Nyambayar,” Pasillas said. “My best performances have been at featherweight and I am much stronger at this weight. I’m very happy that my team was able to provide me with this opportunity. Everyone will see the difference in this fight. I’m hungrier and stronger now than ever before.”

Conceicao excited for return

Former world title challenger Robson Conceicao is highly motivated for his first fight since losing an extremely close and debatable decision challenging WBC junior lightweight titlist Oscar Valdez on Sept. 10.

Conceicao (16-1, 8 KOs), 33, a 2016 Olympic gold medalist from Brazil, is scheduled to face Xavier Martinez (17-0, 11 KOs), 24, of Sacramento, California, in the 10-round main event of the Top Rank Boxing on ESPN card on Jan. 29 (10 p.m. ET) at the Hard Rock Hotel & Casino in Tulsa, Oklahoma, Top Rank announced.

“Nothing can stop me. Nothing can make me lose focus,” Conceicao said. “I remain firm towards my goal of becoming a world champion. My last fight was just a minor setback. I’m going to make sure that all my hard work and sacrifices will not be in vain. I’m excited for the opportunity to be the main event and to face an undefeated fighter like Xavier Martinez.”

Top Rank’s announcement of the fight coincided with its formal announcement that it has signed Martinez, who is managed by Rick Mirigian, also the manager of Top Rank star former unified junior welterweight titlist Jose Ramirez.

“It was a dream to get a multi-year promotional deal with Top Rank and a shot to be the main event on ESPN,” Martinez said. “This is my chance to show the world I’m one of the best in the 130-pound division and work towards my goal of becoming a world champion.”

A 10-round fight between former two-time featherweight title challenger Joet Gonzalez (24-2, 14 KOs), 28, of Los Angeles, and Adam Lopez (15-3, 6 KOs), 25, of Glendale, California, was originally slated as the co-feature but was not finalized and won’t be on the card. Gonzalez, who recently parted ways with Golden Boy, is in the process of finishing a promotional deal with Top Rank.

Pacquiao retrospective

My pals Kieran Mulvaney and Eric Raskin, who host the Showtime Boxing Podcast, have produced a two-part edition looking back at 10 significant fights in the legendary career of Manny Pacquiao. Each fight is recalled by somebody who was at or involved in each of the bouts profiled.

Part 1 is available now and covers five fights. It kicks off with Pacquiao’s United States debut/junior featherweight title victory against Lehlo Ledwaba in 2001 using an interview with me; I covered the fight for USA Today. Also on the episode: referee Joe Cortez, who handled the memorable first fight with Juan Manuel Marquez; Hall of Fame trainer Freddie Roach on the rematch with Erik Morales; former lightweight titlist David Diaz, who lost his belt to Pacquiao; and legendary HBO broadcaster Larry Merchant, who dreamed up the idea for Pacquiao to fight Oscar De La Hoya and was on the broadcast team for the bout.

Part 2 will be available next week but part 1 is available now. Go here. It’s great:

SHOWTIME Boxing @ShowtimeBoxing

The first episode of a two-part podcast special on the career of @MannyPacquiao by @EricRaskin & @kieranmulvaney is available now. 🎧 megaphone.link/CBS5426003253

Quick hits

Mandatory challenger Michael Conlan (16-0, 8 KOs), 30, of Northern Ireland, is headed to enemy turf to challenge WBA “regular” featherweight titlist Leigh Wood (25-2, 15 KOs), 33, on March 12 (DAZN) at the Nottingham Arena in Wood’s hometown of Nottingham, England, Jamie Conlan, Michael’s brother and an executive for MTK Global, which manages Conlan, told Fight Freaks Unite. Wood will be making his first defense in the fight, which will headline a Matchroom Boxing card after it beat Conlan promoter Top Rank in a Nov. 1 purse bid, outbidding it $1,566,666 to $1,210,000. The winner will be mandated to face “super” titleholder Leo Santa Cruz as the WBA continues the process of reducing the number of titles it sanctions.

The IBF on Wednesday approved a junior bantamweight title eliminator for the No. 1 position between Mohamned Obbadi (22-1, 13 KOs), 28, a Morocco native fighting out of Italy, and Jade Bornea (16-0, 10 KOs), 26, of the Philippines. They are scheduled to meet on Jan. 14 on a BXSTARS-Probellum card in Monterrey, Mexico. The winner will become the mandatory challenger for long-reigning 115-pound titlist Jerwin Ancajas (33-1-2, 22 KOs), 29, of the Philippines.

Mandatory challenger Erick Rosa (5-0, 1 KO), 21, a southpaw, won a split decision over Vic Saludar (21-5, 11 KOs), 31, of the Philippines, to claim the WBA’s secondary strawweight belt on Tuesday night at Hotel Catalonia in Rosa’s hometown of Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic. Rosa won 116-109 and 113-112 while one judge favored Saluduar 113-112. Rosa notched knockdowns in the third and ninth rounds and Saludar dropped Rosa in the 10th round. Rosa was one of the 11 fighters stripped of his interim belt by the WBA when it terminated all interim titles in August. As part of its title reduction plan, the WBA will order “super” titleholder Knockout CP Freshmart (23-0, 9 KOs), 31, of Thailand, to face Rosa.

Show and tell

I had a great time covering Terence Crawford’s WBO welterweight title defense against Shawn Porter on Nov. 20 at Mandalay Bay in Las Vegas. I’ve covered many fights there but it had been a few years because the resort has hosted very few fights in recent years. As most expected, it was an excellent fight. Crawford won by 10th-round knockout and afterward Porter, a good friend of Crawford’s, announced his retirement. There was no poster produced for sale but there were a handful of cardboard posters made by broadcaster ESPN that were hung up back stage at the arena. I was very pleased to receive one of them last week for my collection.

Fundora photo: Esther Lin/Showtime

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