Hadribeaj, ranked ninth by The Ring at 154 pounds, welcomes what is literally the biggest challenge of his career as Fundora will hold 7-inch height and 6-inch reach advantages.

"I think that Fundora and I are a great match and that I have worked really hard to deserve this title shot," Hadribeaj (23-0-1, 8 KOs) told The Ring. "Fundora is an interesting opponent from a physical perspective, but height and reach are in the end two static variables that can be neutralized by other dynamic variables like speed and precision. I am very excited to fight him because he calls for a special preparation and that helps me improve as a fighter."

Hadribeaj, whose win over then-unbeaten Bakary Samake led to him cracking The Ring top 10, leaned on his experience

"We went until the end of the fight, and I felt very dominant during the whole fight despite not knocking him out," he said. "There was a 10-year age gap between us, and I proved it doesn't mean much, in this case, age was another static variable that can be offset with the right training."

The 32-year-old Albanian has prepared again in Miami with his manager and trainer Donato DiMartiis.

"It feels almost surreal after so many years of grind," he said. "The path until here has not been easy. Nobody believed in me, I didn't come from a big amateur background and it was hard to get my career financed, but it is fine. I did not ask for an easy path, either."

Hadribeaj hopes that his difficult path will help him upset the heavy favorite.

"I could say that my hard work and discipline give me confidence, but if I am honest it is something much deeper than that. It's an internal belief, in myself and my journey," said the 6/1 underdog.

His promoter, Ahmet Oner, is proud of how his fighter has developed from an unknown to challenging for a world title.

"The last part was very hard [beating Samake] but I'm very surprised how disciplined Ermal was," said Oner. "With this win in Germany, he repaid everything. Now he fights for the prestigious WBC title, and he fights on the big stage in America against a tough guy. Not a very good guy to fight — 6-feet-5 tall. We have to deal with it.

"Fundora is awkward for this division, skinny, extremely tall, not a big puncher but he punches hard enough. Ermal isn't the biggest puncher, but he has to keep him busy. It's a real challenge but nothing is impossible."

Fundora (24-1-1, 16 KOs) is rated No. 3 by The Ring at 154.