Karaoke, 6’6” disguise and the family compound making champs: Inside bizarre life of Tszyu’s rival

'The Executioner' out to spoil comeback | 05:46

Every morning high up in the Californian mountains, Sebastian Fundora wakes to the sound of an air raid siren.

Think a long, whirring howl which sounds loud across a sprawling Fundora compound built undeniably for boxing and so purposely remote, the closest neighbours are deer, mountain lion, even the occasional black bear.

But the biggest predator?

Surely, that has to be the gangly American southpaw, himself.

Tszyu vs Fundora 2 & Pacquiao vs Barrios | SUN 20 JULY 10AM AEST | In the biggest fight of the year, Tim Tszyu faces Sebastian Fundora in a blockbuster rematch, plus Manny Pacquiao makes his highly anticipated return to the ring to face Mario Barrios. | Order now with Main Event on Kayo Sports

A fighter who within minutes of dad cranking that siren by hand – whooooaaaaaaaa -- is up, dressed and out into some six, maybe seven kilometres of gruelling mountain trail running.

Alongside him too, a younger sister now gunning for that Baddest Woman On The Planet crown.

Yep, if Tszyu is to be ruined here in Las Vegas this Sunday, you have to reckon it started way up here in a Tehachapi Mountain wilderness so remote, it leaves little to do but train.

That, and sing karaoke.

A tradition the Fundoras also keep not only every Sunday, but after each boxing victory.

Which as you’ll come to learn, makes for a lot of Sweet Carolines.

That, and sweat sessions.

Understanding that when he’s not out running those mountain trails in work boots -- or tackling a backyard obstacle course all ropes pulls and homemade wooden walls – Fundora can be found at that family barn surrounded by a menagerie of goats, geese, chickens and dogs.

Yet inside?

Well, it’s here every day under the guidance of dad Freddy that the WBC super welterweight champ and younger sister Gabriela -- herself the world’s undisputed flyweight queen -- train amid a chaotic mess of bags, ropes, weights, success.

Sebastian Fundora poses his title belts after defeating WBO junior middleweight champion Tim Tszyu at T-Mobile Arena on March 30, 2024 in Las Vegas, Nevada. Fundora won Tszyu's title and a vacant WBC title by split decision. (Photo by Steve Marcus/Getty Images) Source: Getty Images

All up, there are six Fundora children who fight, or did.

Which is why above the barn entry, a large family crest shows the silhouetted image of three fighters looking left, right and straight ahead -- with the words ‘Boxing Dynasty’ writ large beneath.

Sure, Tszyu has this week joked of the property giving off “cult vibes”.

Yet Tszyu also knows, intimately, of the threats posed by a man who isn’t only the world’s tallest champion, but arguably its most awkward.

Yet you should know too that for the Fundoras, boxing is like breathing.

It’s just what you do.

Which all forms part of six key breakdowns defining the man now looking to end Tim Tszyu …

THE COMPOUND

To really understand the challenge facing Tszyu this Sunday, you must first learn about the Fundora family’s custom-built training facility, sitting high up in the shadows of the Tehachapi Mountains.

A life which starts, every day, with that air raid horn.

“Early in the morning I wake them up with a siren about 7am,” Freddy Fundora explained recently of his two world champion children.

“They go for a four-mile run, come back, do strength and conditioning, feed the goats, see if we have eggs, then it’s breakfast, take a rest, and come back at one o’clock for boxing …”

Call it a life defined by that crest on the family barn.

Something like, say, the boxing version of John Dutton’s oversized ‘Y’ on his sprawling Montana ranch in Yellowstone.

Boxing Dynasty.

"No Head Noise": Why Tim has the edge... | 04:17

When the Fundoras lived in nearby Coachella, this same insignia flew from a flag on the family’s home.

One Freddy raised whenever one of his four eldest children were enduring camp in the family’s backyard, which housed both a small ring and gym.

Yet now?

Well, that famed family crest – or whatever you want to call it – sits emblazoned on the barn, on gloves, training tops, and bottoms, even that bright, yellow beanie Sebastian dons for those morning runs.

THE HEIGHT

Sebastian Fundora looks so skinny, almost fragile, that you can’t help but think back to that famed Billy Birmingham line about Bruce Reid, rolling in to bowl … and then snapping in half.

It’s a wonderful disguise.

Understanding that apart from standing 6’6’’ in the old scale, or boasting a 203cm reach, Fundora also displays a surprising amount of power – and while fighting unlike you’d expect a big man.

A truth Tszyu learned among buckets of blood last year, when the leftie took not one, but two world titles in a chaotic split decision coloured red.

Instead of staying long, as his size dictates, Fundora likes to come inside, dogfighting all uppercuts and body blows, before then going back out to throw punches lifted straight from an Inspector Gadget cartoon.

A busy puncher, Fundora will also be looking to break Tszyu down with looping hooks, those uppercuts from the inside, and that undeniable knack of dictating fights on his terms.

Fundora STILL 'that much better' | 06:34

THE BACKGROUND

While he is only now making headlines as WBC super welterweight king, Fundora’s story starts during a childhood in Florida, where he was raised inside a rented, single-storey bungalow.

Think two bedrooms, no TV and an air conditioner always off to save on costs.

So tight were the living quarters, Sebastian shared one room with two siblings, including his sister, while two more brothers bunked down in a backyard shed.

Then weekends, the Fundoras would fight.

Together, travelling all over America in a small white van dubbed The Intimidator.

It was also boxing that dictated the family’s eventual move to Coachella – given its proximity to the fight hubs of Las Vegas, Los Angeles and Mexico.

It was here too where Freddy constructed not only a backyard ring for his children to train, but also a small casita where, during fight camps, sparring partners could be housed.

More recently, the Fundoras shifted to their new mountain home, which is from where both Sebastian and Gabriela train every day, no matter the date or weather.

Speaking recently with Uncrowned, Freddy was asked to explain his unique family set-up.

“We work hard as a whole,” he replied. “We live up in the mountains and when it snows, we each have a shovel.

“Even my 10-year-old.

“We always work as a family, as a unit … it works out well.”

Tszyu & Fundora relive Bloody War! | 15:17

THE FATHER

Emigrating from Cuba with his family aged five, Freddy Fundora eventually grew into the type of man who has trained all six of his children -- and initially, in Florida, after hanging a heavy bag in the family’s living room.

Divorcing his first wife when the eldest four children were young, Freddy then took custody, drove a cab, installed fire prevention systems, trained, travelled across country in The Intimidator and eventually married for a second time.

A former Air Force Security Forces officer, Monique Fundora toured Kuwait, boxed herself and eventually, after going undefeated, gifted her signature pink gloves to that step-daughter who now rules the world’s flyweight division.

Like her husband, Monique is happy living the family’s boxing life.

Indeed, when it comes to the blueprint for training his children, Freddy cites Richard Williams’ vision for his tennis playing daughters, Serena and Venus.

'Really liked Andrew' Tszyu rinses Matty | 01:28

THE SISTER

Sebastian Fundora is pushed every day in training by an undefeated champion – his sister.

With Gabriela, still only 23, having this past year not only become the youngest unified champion ever, but The Ring’s Female Fighter of the Year.

Speaking recently of a sibling who has gone undefeated in 16 fights, including five title bouts, Sebastian said: “I was telling everybody, ‘Watch out, she’s going to be the best girl fighter in the world’.

“It’s why I’m happy to tell everybody (now) that I’m right.

“I told everybody she’s going to be the one … now she’s proving it.”

Elsewhere, another Fundora brother Alberto, went undefeated through a dozen super middleweight fights before giving the sport away, while youngest sister Fabiola, 10, is already showcasing such a mean left hook she’s been given the moniker ‘Twisted Sister’.

Every day, Sebastian, Gabriela and Fabiola train together.

It starts on those mountain runs, and then moves to the barn where the older siblings, in particular, are continually encouraging each other exactly as you would expect the first simultaneous brother and sister world champions.

Interviewed recently about her brother, Gabriela said: “He wakes, trains, eats, sleeps, wakes, trains, eats, sleeps … that’s who he is”.

And her?

“I’m him,” she said. “But a girl version.”

Tszyu: 'Biggest boxing card of the year' | 01:04

THE LIFE

Undeniably, boxing is life for the Fundoras.

Step outside the front door, you see their gym.

Go inside their gym, you’ll find a pair of world champions.

All of which, Tszyu is up against this Sunday.

Facing not only Fundora, but that Boxing Dynasty.

Sure, this son of Hall of Famer has his own story.

His own drive.

But so does the gangly champ who wakes each morning to the sound of his old man’s air raid horn.

Asked to describe what the fight game means to them recently, the siblings described it as like breathing, or sleeping.

Boxing, they said, is just another of those things.

Click here to read article