Thurman Targets A Return To Fighting In 2024

Keith Thurman is targeting a return to the ring next year with plenty of fights planned. 

‘One Time’ has not been the most active of fighters of late. His last bout was in 2022 when he beat Mario Barrios via a unanimous decision.

That included a run of four fights in five years as a combination of injury and inactivity disrupted his progress ever since he became the unified welterweight champion with his win over Danny Garcia.

Although that may be the case, Thurman has actually only lost once against Manny Pacquiao which is no shame. But at the age of 34, Thurman is entering into the latter parts of his career, which is why he plans on having a big 2024. 

Thurman’s Next Fight

“We just gotta wait for this announcement. They’ve been playing with my emotions all year, kid. They’ve been playing with my emotions all year, kid. At this point, it’s just going to be about staying busy for the next few years, getting a bit more activity. I would love to fight once this year since I’ve been on the bench all year. But when it comes to next year, I gotta stay moving. If I can do two fights and an exhibition, two fights and a UFC fight, I don’t know what’s gonna happen, but I need to stay busy, Thurman

Those comments would suggest that Thurman’s chances of securing another title shot are slim. Reports linked Thurman with a fight against Yordenis Ugas for what would have been the WBC interim belt at 147. However, the fight broke down with Ugas feeling puzzled as to why that was the case. 

Ugas On Thurman

“I was training to fight Thurman. I was practically sure that was gonna happen. I have no idea why that fight got undone. But I’m here and I’m ready for this next challenge, and it’s gonna be a great one. I wanted Thurman. I don’t know what happened to Thurman, but Barrios is a great fighter. I’m happy to fight with Barrios. … Barrios is strong. He’s a great fighter. He’s a former world champion,” Ugas stated 

Thurman has yet to reveal the actual fights being lined up. Terence Crawford has already ruled out fighting Thurman, while a fight at 147 against Jaron Ennis has not gotten the attention of the fans. 

Shields-Thurman

However, Claressa Shields did shockingly call out the boxer for a fight. Such a bout would have made history by being the first-ever cross-gender boxing fight.

Although Thurman did surprisingly agree to it verbally, his following comments made it clear that he had no interest in the bout. 

“I can fight for any charity event, we can raise money and let you try to showcase your skills and talent. I’d probably use my jab only. But at the end of the day, I don’t know why you wanna gun after me, I’ve heard you say my name so many times in the past, but this is not what boxing is to me. If the fans were actually interested in something like this, it’s not really in my heart, but for the people and for charity I would make something like that happen. I would wear bigger gloves, I would let her wear smaller gloves. I would let her wear headgear too. I don’t really wanna punch a girl in the face,” Thurman