Sebastian Fundora backs Canelo Alvarez’s boxing to beat Christian Mbilli, dismissing the challenger as too one-dimensional. That prediction leaves a bigger question unanswered: whether Canelo can handle the pace without tiring against a younger fighter who keeps coming.
“Canelo has the edge in this one. Mbilli is a good fighter, a strong fighter, but for me, he’s too one-dimensional,” said Fundora to DAZN.
Fundora pointed to Mbilli’s fight with Lester Martinez to explain his doubts, saying he expected a knockout.
“We saw when he fought Lester Martinez; he kind of lost, and I expected him to knock out Lester. But he lost, and Canelo has way more boxing [skills] than that.”
Fundora is committing two classic errors here: analyzing a fighter based on past reputation rather than current reality, and constructing an entire technical case on a false premise.
First, getting the outcome of the Martinez fight wrong completely undercuts his credibility. Mbilli did not lose that fight; it was a grueling split draw where Martinez had to resort to repeated, blatant shoving just to survive the inside pressure and create punching room. Building an argument that Mbilli will fold against Canelo because he “kind of lost” collapses the moment you look at what actually happened in the ring.
Second, Fundora is talking about Canelo as if this were the 2018 or 2021 version who could slip, counter, and control the center of the ring for twelve uninterrupted rounds. That fighter is gone.
At 36, after extensive wear and tear, long stretches of inactivity, and noticeable stamina drops in the second half of fights, Canelo has become an economy puncher. He relies on explosive, low-volume bursts to bank rounds while resting on the ropes.
Mbilli is the absolute worst style for an aging champion trying to conserve energy. Mbilli does not care about taking two clean shots if it allows him to land five to the body and force a phone-booth brawl.
Against a tireless pressure fighter who refuses to let him breathe, Canelo cannot just rely on superior technique. Ring IQ only works if the legs and lungs can carry out the plan for three full minutes of every round. Fundora is picking the name and the highlight reel, completely ignoring the clock and the stylistic nightmare right in front of Canelo.