Sebastian Fundora (24-1-1, 16 KOs) will soon put his WBC super welterweight world title on the line against Ermal Hadribeaj (23-0-1, 8 KOs, 1 NC).
Their bout headlines a Premier Boxing Champions (PBC) card in the Chelsea Ballroom at The Cosmopolitan in Las Vegas, NV. Fight fans in the United States can catch the action live on TNT and DAZN. The rest of the world will be able to do so exclusively on DAZN.
Both men spoke at a press conference ahead of their Oct. 17 contest. Below is some of what they had to say.
Sebastian Fundora vs. Ermal Hadribeaj press conference quotes
Sebastian Fundora
“This Saturday we have everything on this card,” said Fundora. “Make sure to tune in, because we’re gonna make it a knockout of a weekend.”
“He’s an undefeated fighter. He’s hungry, but we’ve seen that before. We’ve fought champions. This is the major leagues of boxing and we’re here to prove again why we’ll remain the champion.”
“I’ve been in this sport for a while. I’ve been fighting for 22 years. It’s been a lot of learning and now we’re showing you guys.”
Ermal Hadribeaj
“I want to show that I’m an exciting fighter that people are going to want to watch,” said Hadribeaj. “Tell the fans around the world that ‘The Albanian Sniper’ is coming for Sebastian Fundora.”
“I met Fundora three years ago and I want to shake his hand and let him know that the respect is there. We knew that we’d want to fight him, but I wasn’t ready at that moment. Now I’ve proven that I belong here.
“We worked a lot in training camp and I think we have the key. If that key doesn’t work, I have another key in my pocket. I have everything I need. I’m fast, I’m strong, I work hard and I have punch resistance. Everyone thinks he has the advantage, but his only advantage is that he’s tall.”
The Big Fight Weekend verdict
From Big Fight Weekend’s Ricky Carroll: Despite his 6-foot-5½ frame, Fundora has shown an exceptional ability to fight on the inside and outwork his opponents. However, in more recent fights, he has shown an ability to fight long and use his 80-inch reach, and dictate the distance and tempo.
Showcasing his ability to fight on the inside or long, only makes “The Towering Inferno” even tougher to face.
Hadribeaj doesn’t waste anything in the ring. He picks his punches with precision, while using his slick lateral movement to make angles for him to attack.
The Albanian rarely looks flustered when he fights, but we see Fundora keeping it long in the first few rounds until he sees what Hadribeaj has to offer. We then see Fundora walking the Albanian fighter down and unloading vicious flurries, stopping the challenger between rounds 5 and 8.
Full press conference
For the press conference in its entirety, click here or the play button below. Video courtesy of PBC.
Other boxing content
Daniel Dubois vs Fabio Wardley 2 fight preview
No Limit Boxing announce Tim Tszyu world title fight: ‘The time is now’
Sebastian Fundora vs Keith Thurman live results update
Featured image credit
Cris Esqueda – PBC