“Give me a good three. Give me a good five. I mean, because five will get me to 40,” Thurman told MillCity Boxing.
Later in the discussion, he started naming potential opponents.
“Thurman vs. Conor Benn. Ryan Garcia. Like Thurman vs. Tank Davis. Put the name Thurman next to everybody. All the bodies. Just not the nobodies,” Keith said.
The comments highlight Thurman’s desire to secure big fights rather than engage in a lengthy rebuilding process. However, landing battles against Benn, Garcia or Ennis could be difficult given his recent activity and form.
Thurman, 37, is coming off a sixth-round knockout loss to WBC junior middleweight champion Sebastian Fundora on March 28. The former welterweight champion struggled throughout the contest, unable to find any sustained success against the taller, younger champion.
The loss continued a trend that has followed Thurman for much of the past decade. Since his victory over Danny Garcia in March 2017, he has only fought four times. Injuries, layoffs and long periods of inactivity prevented him from building momentum during what should have been the prime of his career.
The challenge for Thurman is to convince the teams behind Benn, Garcia and Ennis that those fights make business sense. Ryan Garcia and Conor Benn are currently fighting at welterweight and have little incentive to move up in weight for a fighter coming off a stoppage loss.
Ennis may be the most realistic target, but even that path likely requires Thurman to rebuild his standing first. A win over a respected contender like Israil Madrimov could help restore some credibility, while back-to-back wins over contenders would make him harder to ignore.
Thurman seems focused on the biggest names available. Whether those fighters are interested in facing him is another matter entirely.
