Approximately a month after solidifying the date for their high-stakes 154-pound fight, Erickson Lubin and Sebastian Fundora also have learned where they’ll meet in the ring.
BoxingScene.com has confirmed that Lubin and Fundora will square off April 9 at Virgin Hotels Las Vegas. Showtime will televise their 12-round junior middleweight match as the main event of a tripleheader from what was once known as Hard Rock Hotel & Casino.
Bob Arum’s Top Rank Inc. held five boxing cards at Virgin Hotels Las Vegas in 2021, including one that featured a full 140-pound title unification bout between Josh Taylor and Jose Ramirez last May 22.
The winner between Lubin, 26, and Fundora, 24, will become the WBC’s mandatory challenger for the victor of a subsequent full title unification rematch in which IBF/WBA/WBC 154-pound champ Jermell Charlo will battle WBO champ Brian Castano. Lubin-Fundora will be contested for the WBC interim super welterweight title as well.
The left-handed Lubin (24-1, 17 KOs), of Orlando, Florida, will take a six-fight winning streak into the Fundora fight. Lubin most recently knocked out former IBF/IBO/WBA champ Jeison Rosario (21-3-1, 15 KOs) in the sixth round of their scheduled 12-rounder on the Gervonta Davis-Mario Barrios undercard June 26 at State Farm Arena in Atlanta.
His victory over Rosario marked Lubin’s most impressive performance since Charlo knocked him out with one punch in the first round of their October 2017 fight for Charlo’s WBC belt at Barclays Center in Brooklyn. Lubin, then only 21 years old, was the mandatory challenger for Charlo’s championship entering that bout, which Showtime also televised.
The 6-foot-6 Fundora will take what figures to be his toughest test against Lubin. The tall, rangy southpaw improved to 18-0 (12 KOs) when he topped Spain’s Sergio Garcia (33-1, 14 KOs) by unanimous decision in their competitive but unremarkable 12-round elimination match on the Davis-Isaac Cruz undercard December 5 at Staples Center in Los Angeles.
Garcia, meanwhile, will face former WBC super welterweight champ Tony Harrison (28-3-1, 21 KOs) in Showtime’s 12-round co-feature before Lubin and Fundora fight in the main event.
Keith Idec is a senior writer/columnist for BoxingScene.com. He can be reached on Twitter @Idecboxing.
