For Gabriela Fundora, boxing came naturally from an early age as a family affair.
Fundora, 22, from Florida, has risen to the highest level of the sport. And currently holds the IBF flyweight title this Saturday. She will face WBC, WBA and WBO 112-pound champion Gabriela Celeste Alaniz, 28, of Argentina. at the championship at Virgin Hotels in Las Vegas.
Fundora, 14-0 (6 KO), describes her mother, Monique, as her role model.
“What inspired me to box was my mother,” Fundora told BoxingScene. “I was always watching her in the ring at the time. She also does boxing. So I just watched her do her thing, do all this punching, and that got me interested in it.
“And I want to punch people in the face, too. So from there The rest is history.”
Fundora achieved his dream of becoming world champion last June. He lost to Arely Mucino in the 5th round after successfully defending against Cristina Cruz and Daniela Asenjo twice. Fundora then chose to face Alaniz, 15-1 (6 KO), for the undisputed championship.
Ahead of the fight, Fundora said she expects an exciting showdown ahead of the history-making bout.
“She is an amazing woman,” Fundora said of Alaniz. “I saw her fight last time. But I didn’t say much about that. I let my coach do the work.
“We have worked hard. This is a big fight. So we have to be very strong. Everything went smoothly and the campsite was great. I just knew I had to train hard and focus on what was in front of me.
“I am excited. This will be history And it will be history. For many reasons We have the undisputed youngest male or female champion. I will be first in the division. There’s a lot of history going on. And it is an amazing opportunity.”
Alaniz tries to avenge the painful decision loss to Marlen. Esparza in July of last year By winning a split decision in the rematch nine months later, Fundora was preparing for the best of Alaniz.
“I just prepared everything in me,” Fundora continued. “I always hope for a knockout and in every round I try to get that knockout. But I can’t predict when it will come. This is boxing and anything can happen,” Fundora said.
When asked what it means to be the undisputed champion, Fundora responded, “Oh, it’s everything. This is the goal of every boxer. And this is what we’ve been practicing since we were little kids. So it’s everything.”
Bernard Neequaye is a sports journalist specializing in boxing coverage. He wrote a boxing column called “From The Ringside” in his home country of Ghana for many years. He can be reached on X (formerly Twitter) at @BernardNeequaye, LinkedIn at Bernard Neequaye and by email at bernardneequaye@gmail.com–
