Gabriela Fundora accepts opportunity to make history in Las Vegas

Gabriela Fundora envisioned the perfect Halloween if she wasn’t preparing for her biggest fight yet.

“Before, it would have been home to see the Dodgers win the World Series,” Fundora told The Ring. “And then we will give out candy. Also take my little sister out to get candy, maybe go to a haunted house. Try to scare her and also be a little scared yourself, but try not to show it.”

The role model in the 22-year-old – fondly known as ‘Sweet Poison’ – was able to celebrate in her own way during fight week.

Local kids were able to meet and trick-or-treat with Fundora in Las Vegas earlier this week. The session came days out from her undisputed flyweight championship against Gabriela Alaniz. The RING Championship and all four major belts will be on the line this Saturday on DAZN from Virgin Hotels Las Vegas.

Fundora-Alaniz serves in a supporting capacity for the Floyd Schofield-Rene Tellez Giron main event.

A win would fulfill a boxing lifetime goal for Fundora. The chance to give back outside the ring was that last bit of motivation needed to make history in the ring.

“These kids are the next generation,” said the ever humble and charming Fundora. “It’s always good to give back and give them the time they deserve. You don’t have to be a certain way to become famous and popular.

“You can just be there giving out candy and have a big smile on your face. It’s always so important to give back.”

Of course, winning in the ring also helps.

Fundora (14-0, 6 KOs) has been perfect in that regard to date. The 5’9″ southpaw from Coachella, California has also moved at a fast pace to achieve excellence. She dethroned IBF flyweight titlist Arely Mucino via fifth-round knockout last October 21 in Inglewood, California. The career-best performance at the time came in just her thirteenth pro contest.

Three fights and just 53 weeks later, Fundora is now bidding for all the flyweight chips. Alaniz (15-1, 6 KOs) holds the RING Championship and the WBC, WBA and WBO belts.

Saturday’s winner will become the first woman in boxing history to fully unify the flyweight division. A win by Fundora would make her the sport’s youngest active undisputed champion.

Accomplishing it in a city that also saw her older brother, Sebastian Fundora (21-1-1, 13 KOs), become the WBC/WBO 154-pound king earlier this year is the chef’s kiss.

“It didn’t matter to me (where the fight took place),” Fundora said, but with clarification. “But there’s a but… it’s the cherry on top to have it in Vegas. I said that when we first got this fight, Vegas was the place for the Fundoras this year.

“I’m so excited for him. I won my belt last year and now he’s a unified champion. It’s my turn to join him again and win all these belts (Saturday). My father (Freddy Fundora, Sebastian and Gabriela’s head coach) should be Coach of the Year.”

Of course, a win has to come on Saturday for it to count.

Fundora’s original target was Marlen Esparza, who was the RING/WBC/WBA/WBO champion last year. Esparza ended Alaniz’s WBO reign with a majority decision victory last July 8 in San Antonio, Texas.

The verdict was disputed enough for Alaniz to successfully appeal for an immediate rematch. ‘La Chucky’ came through the second time around, laying aside an overweight Esparza on April 27 in Fresno, California.

It opened a path to undisputed.

Both fighters are jointly promoted by Golden Boy Promotions. Alaniz is primarily managed by Georgina Rivero’s OR Promotions, while Fundora is signed to the legendary Sampson Lewkowicz.

Everyone involved understood the importance of this fight.

“Fighting for undisputed was always the goal,” Fundora noted. “This has been in place for the past two years after we became a contender. It doesn’t matter who has the belts. As long as we fight for undisputed, it’s going to pay off for us in the end.”

A win on Saturday would see Fundora make the bench at the lower weights.

That designation became open with the sudden retirement of Seniesa Estrada. The RING/undisputed strawweight queen called it a career in October, seven months after fully unifying the 105-pound division.

Estrada also won a title at junior flyweight and a secondary belt at flyweight. The diminutive pound-for-pound competitor once contemplated a move to Fundora, but left the sport, and with it a huge hole at the superstar level.

Fundora would love to fill that void.

“Congratulations to Seniesa. She was a heck of a fighter,” Fundora admitted. “Now it’s about getting that business. This fight will give it more of that shine.”

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