The WBC junior middleweight champion and The Ring’s No. 2 contender has a title defense scheduled against Keith Thurman on March 28 in Las Vegas.

Fundora (23-1-1, 15 KOs), a sturdy and oversized southpaw, is listed as a stout betting favorite to topple Thurman (31-1, 23 KOs). With the win, the floodgates should open for “The Towering Inferno” Fundora to consider a series of legacy-defining fights in boxing’s most talent-rich weight class.

The 154-pound division had a pair of titles change hands last weekend when Josh Kelly upset Bakhram Murtazaliev for the IBF belt and Xander Zayas beat Abass Baraou in a title unification fight to become the WBA and WBO champion.

Arguably, however, the best fighters at 154 don’t have a seat at the championship table. Vergil Ortiz, rated No. 1 by The Ring, and sixth-ranked Jaron Ennis are supposed to fight each other but monthslong negotiations have been more complicated than solving the Pythagorean theorem.

“It's the best division right now, especially because I am in it,” Fundora told The Ring. “I don't pick and choose my opponents. I don't get a seat at the table. [Manager] Sampson Lewkowicz and PBC do everything for me. Thurman is the fight for me, right now. It's business. It's great going against a big name, against a future Hall of Fame fighter. I think he already has his name in there.”

Fundora, who stands 6-foot-6, successfully defended the WBC and WBO titles when he stopped Chordale Booker in March. He was stripped of the WBO belt in May when he pursued a more lucrative rematch against Tim Tszyu rather than face Zayas, who was mandatory challenger at the time.

“When Zayas came into the ring after the Booker fight, I already knew I was going to fight Tszyu next,” said Fundora.

Following a split-decision win in a blood bath against Tszyu two years ago, Fundora battered and beat him into a seventh-round submission in a July rematch as the co-main event to the Manny Pacquiao-Mario Barrios fight in Las Vegas.

Fundora now gets to headline at the venue as the A-side on Prime Video PPV against Thurman, past his prime but promotable former unified welterweight champion. They were originally supposed to meet October 25, but Fundora suffered a hand injury and the fight had to be rescheduled.

PBC was gung-ho on making the matchup a reality, even with former undisputed champion Jermell Charlo and long-rumored Fundora foe Errol Spence sitting on the sidelines, both since 2023.

Fundora, a mild-mannered 29-year-old from Coachella, California, is open to all comers but never fans the flames while screaming from the mountaintop.

“A win [against Thurman] would be another great highlight of my career,” he said. “It would show that we’re moving in the right direction and taking the right steps.

“We live and we learn from our mistakes. We’ll be there on March 28 to show you what we’re all about.”

Thurman particularly pointed to Fundora's lone loss against Brian Mendoza by knockout in 2023 as a case study to dethrone him.

“Beating me would be the greatest accomplishment of your career, Fundora, don’t lie to yourself,” said Thurman. “You have been hit and not gotten off the canvas. I’m happy to make you experience it again.

“I already see the mistakes that he’s unfortunately gonna be making on March 28. Boxing isn’t about the talk, though, it’s about delivering in the ring. Fundora is a man of few words, but many punches.”

Fundora, who also showed grit in a 2022 war against Erickson Lubin, wasn’t having any of Thurman’s histrionics.

“I think everybody underestimates me,” said Fundora. “That’s part of the game. Whatever they say, you just have to go out there and show everyone what you’re made of."

When asked for his assessment of Zayas' and Kelly’s winning performances, Fundora didn’t have an opinion, simply because he didn’t watch either fight.

“I'm not interested,” he said.

But Fundora certainly let his feelings be known once the conversation shifted to Ortiz and Ennis.

“I think they'll get a deal done once the banter between the teams is over,” he said. "I think Ortiz wins the fight. I like his fighting style more. It's a better fit. I think Boots is definitely beatable. We'll see once that fight happens. He's human, just like all of us. I am ready to face the winner, if they say so.”

If that bout doesn’t materialize, Ortiz could use his position as the WBC interim titleholder to next face Fundora in a matchup featuring The Ring’s top-two rated fighters for the vacant Ring title.

“We'll see what everybody says once my hand is raised after the Thurman fight,” said Fundora.