By: Sean Crose
It wasn’t that long ago, just over a decade perhaps, that Keith “One Time” Thurman was the most colorful man in boxing. Okay maybe not the single most colorful man in boxing but certainly close. Here was a guy who seemed to be one half hippie, one half cocky warrior. There simply wasn’t anyone like the Florida native, with his ponytail and woodwind instruments. Then there was the power punching that allowed him to go through one opponent after another. Make no mistake about it, Thurman was one of the big names of the Mayweather-Pacquiao era. Sure enough, Thurman went on to belatedly face Pacquiao back in 2019. Pacquiao, the aging great, won by upset but there was no shame in Thurman’s performance.
Still a loss is a loss even if it comes at the gloved hands of a legend. Thurman had indeed lost the biggest fight of his life. Not that he didn’t have some impressive victories however. Shawn Porter, and Danny Garcia come to mind, as do others such as. Robert Guerrero. These weren’t slugs – they were certainly A tier fighters. They weren’t Pacquiao though who along with Mayweather dominated the era. Of course Thurman could have just laid back after the Pacquiao fight and savored his money, his family, and the fact that he had won not one but two world titles throughout the course of his career.
That however wasn’t Keith Thurman. Over the next several years, Thurman went on to win two more fights. Earlier this year however, when he decided to fight Sebastian Fundora a towering world titlist, it seemed that Thurman had truly met his match. Fundora was not only younger and fresher, he beat Thurman from pillar to post in the ring. No one had seen anything like that. Indeed one had to wonder if even a younger Thurman could have held off against the violent Fundora. It seemed like a sad end but again, Thurman wasn’t the kind of guy to slip into sadness. And so he’ll be squaring off yet again, this time against Vergil Ortiz this December in Glendale, Arizona.
Why Thurman would want to take on the likes of Ortiz is a bit puzzling. 10 years ago, maybe even 15 years ago, Thurman may have been able to take a fighter like Ortiz. In fact he may well have. That’s ancient history though and right now there’s a reason the betting odds are so in favor of the undefeated Ortiz. It seems like a classic case of age versus stubbornness, of the will pushing aside reason. Unless Thurman needs the money, or sees something in Ortiz’ style, a la Max Schmeling, it’s worth wondering why he wants to slip inside the ropes yet again.
“This is a redemption fight,” the eternally optimistic Thurman has said via PBC. “I always want to fight the best and be on the biggest stages. At the end of the day, it’s another part of boxing history.” That may be true but some may be wondering if Thurman should make his career a part of boxing history instead of fighting dangerous opponents like Ortiz.“I have a lot of beautiful boxing history on my resume,” claimed Thurman, who will be facing Ortiz at middleweight, “and I’m definitely looking to add another piece of history on December fifth.” Of course boxing is a sport where it’s ridiculous to completely write anyone off. Thurman may indeed show his old self and defeat Ortiz in stunning fashion. The rational thing isn’t to completely dismiss Thurman’s chances, but to look at those chances honestly. And frankly they don’t look good. Who knows though? As Thurman himself has said “anyone can get it one time.”
