The bruises, bumps, cuts, scrapes and swelling on his face definitely seemed worse than it felt, according to Thurman. The former WBA/WBC welterweight champ remained angry at referee Thomas Taylor for denying him the opportunity to either catch Fundora with a punch that could’ve changed the complexion of their bout or to suffer a more definitive defeat.

The 37-year-old Thurman remained on his feet when Taylor halted their WBC 154-pound championship clash at 1:17 of the sixth round at MGM Grand Garden Arena. A relentless Fundora was in complete control, but the durable Thurman believes he should’ve been knocked down at least once before Taylor halted the action and left him with the first knockout defeat on his record (31-2, 23 KOs, 1 NC).

“Fundora’s a tremendous champion, but whoever the f*** that referee was, don’t hire him for f****** main event s*** ever again, man,” Thurman said. “Real talk. Do you remember Erik Morales versus Marcos Maidana? Do you remember how many times people fought with broken orbital bones? S***’s not even broken, man. Never got dropped in the whole fight.

“I’m getting caught on the back end of punches. The referee told me in the locker room, ‘Show me something. Move your feet. Duck your head. I won’t stop the fight.’ I’m using my legs. I’m getting caught on the back end. I wasn’t buckled. He just jumped in like a white rabbit, man, so them little hoppy referees, they’re not made for main event boxing.”

The California-based Taylor often officiates championship fights in Nevada and his home state and does not have a reputation for stopping matches prematurely.

The 6-foot-6 Fundora worked well behind his jab, used overwhelming volume to keep Thurman mostly on his back foot and didn’t take many flush punches from an experienced opponent who stands almost a foot shorter and is nine years older than him. The Coachella, California native was ahead 50-45, 50-45 and 49-46 on the scorecards through five rounds, yet Thurman argued afterward that Fundora (24-1-1, 16 KOs) was getting “way too comfortable” throwing combinations and becomes more susceptible to getting hit with clean shots later in fights.

Fundora led Brian Mendoza by big margins – 60-54, 60-54 and 59-55 – before Mendoza landed three punches that knocked him out in the seventh round of their April 2023 bout in Carson, California. The improved southpaw, ranked second among The Ring’s contenders for a vacant 154-pound title, has won four straight fights since Mendoza defeated him.،

Thurman nevertheless believes he could’ve done what Mendoza accomplished had he been afforded more time.

“The fight was getting fun,” Thurman said before noting that he won’t retire despite his age and the brutal nature of this fight. “The people were standing on their feet. We was just getting into the grind. You know? And he was getting really comfortable swinging wide, swinging big, swinging wide. Because he’s young, because he trains hard, he put that press [on me] because he’s a volume puncher. He put that press [on me] and the referee reacted to that, you know? So, Fundora’s preparation, his fight style, it all ended up [playing] out for him.

“But as a OG, man, four more minutes, it woulda been a lotta fun, I promise you. Four more minutes, and he coulda made a mistake right in front of me, man. I was waiting for it. I knew it was gonna be one of these kinda tough fights against a young champion, and I had that long-term vision, but the ref didn’t let me get there, man. So, it was unfortunate, but I’m grateful. I’m OK. I’m able to talk to you guys. I don’t need to be in the hospital. Everything is what it is.”