Sebastian Fundora Says He Won't Fight Boots Ennis in Saudi Arabia
The WBC junior middleweight champion says he'd walk away from the Ennis fight before accepting a Saudi venue.
Sebastian Fundora wants the biggest fight at 154 pounds. He just doesn't want it in Saudi Arabia.
The WBC junior middleweight champion told Boxing News 24 that he's targeting the winner of Jaron "Boots" Ennis versus Josh Kelly for a unification bout in early spring 2027. But Fundora drew a hard line on the venue, saying he would walk away from the fight entirely before accepting a date in the Kingdom.
"There's a reason why I haven't fought in Saudi Arabia," Fundora said. "I wouldn't feel comfortable, me being an American and everything like that."
Fundora cited his mother's military service as part of his reasoning, calling the issue "bigger than boxing." He has never competed on a Saudi card despite the country's aggressive push into the sport over the past several years.
The stance could complicate negotiations. Saudi Arabia has been the primary source of blockbuster purses in boxing, and ruling it out as a venue likely shrinks the available money for both sides. Ennis, who has been chasing a legacy-defining payday, may not be eager to accept a domestic fight at a fraction of what the Saudis would offer.
Fundora defends his WBC title against Ermal Hadribeaj this Saturday before turning his attention to the Ennis-Kelly winner. He expects Ennis to win that fight and frames the potential matchup as the best in the division.
"I think the winner of Boots and Kelly should be the opponent for our next fight," Fundora said. "I think that's early, early maybe springtime of next year, 2027."
I respect Fundora for saying this publicly, because most fighters in his position would keep quiet and let their promoter figure it out behind closed doors. You don't hear many active champions voluntarily remove the biggest paycheck from the table.
But here's the problem. If Boots Ennis gets past Josh Kelly, and he should, Ennis has been waiting years for the kind of payday that Saudi money delivers. He's not going to take a domestic PPV split when Turki Alalshikh is writing checks. And Fundora knows that.
So either Fundora's principles cost him the fight, or Ennis takes less money because he wants the belt badly enough. My gut says this gets resolved. These two need each other. Fundora has the title, Ennis has the hype, and 154 doesn't have another fight this big. But if it falls apart over the venue, boxing will have fumbled another fight that fans actually want.
https://www.boxingnews24.com/2026/10/sebastian-fundora-rules-out-saudi-arabia-for-boots-fight/
