Gabriela Fundora never panicked Saturday night.
Christina Cruz outboxed her during the first half of their IBF flyweight title, but the aggressive, patient, stronger Fundora began landing harder shots during the sixth round and took complete control of their 10-round championship clash on the Jaime Munguia-John Ryder undercard at Footprint Center in Phoenix. Fundora (13-0, 6 KOs), the younger sister of former WBC interim super welterweight champ Sebastian Fundora, wore down Cruz and stopped her in the 10th round because Cruz turned her back on Fundora and didn’t defend herself.
Referee Chris Flores, who could’ve simply warned Cruz for turning her back, stopped their 112-pound title fight at 59 seconds of the final round. Cruz protested the stoppage, but Flores felt that by turning her back that Cruz didn’t want to continue.
Fundora did land punches to the back of Cruz’s head a few seconds before their fight oddly ended.
The 21-year-old Fundora, of Coachella, California, successfully defended her IBF 112-pound championship for the first time. Fundora defeated Mexico’s Arely Mucino (32-4-2, 11 KOs) by fifth-round knockout to win that IBF belt in her last fight, which took place October 21 at Kia Forum in Inglewood, California.
The 41-year-old Cruz, who was an accomplished amateur, suffered her first professional defeat (6-1, 0 KOs). The native New Yorker didn’t make her pro debut until August 2021 and beat a low level of opposition before she fought Fundora.
Fundora continued to break down a fading Cruz before Flores halted the action in the 10th round.
A left hand by Fundora stung Cruz barely 20 seconds into the ninth round. Cruz mostly retreated during the ninth round, when Fundora landed two lefts toward the end of it.
A right-left combination by Fundora was the highlight of the eighth round, which she controlled against a fading Cruz.
Fundora’s straight left landed 15 seconds into the seventh round, when Cruz appeared to start slowing down. Cruz did land a left to the side of Fundora’s head with about 25 seconds on the clock in the seventh round.
Fundora finally drilled Cruz with a straight left a little more than 40 seconds into the sixth round. Cruz slipped many of Fundora’s punches later in the sixth round, but Fundora’s left to Cruz’s body made her retreat late in that round.
Cruz continued to outbox Fundora during the fourth and fifth rounds, when Fundora was the aggressor, yet had difficulty connecting with clean punches. Cruz didn’t land many punches during those rounds, either, but she was more accurate.
Cruz landed a right hand with just over 10 seconds to go in the third round.
Cruz caught Fundora with a right hand that landed with about 50 seconds remaining in the third round. Fundora’s right hook connected less than 10 seconds later.
Cruz kept her distance from Fundora again in the second round, when she landed a counter left hook. Fundora worked off her jab again during that two-minute period.
Fundora pressed the action throughout the first round, but neither fighter landed many punches in those two minutes.
Keith Idec is a senior writer/columnist for BoxingScene.com. He can be reached on Twitter @Idecboxing.