By Jake Donovan

Two of the tallest super welterweights in the world couldn’t quite settle their differences in the ring.

An evenly matched bout between prospects Sebastian Fundora and Jamontay Clark resulted in a 10-round split decision draw Saturday evening at Minneapolis Armory in Minneapolis, Minn.

Scores were 98-92 Fundora, 96-94 Clark and 95-95 even.

Rare is the occasion that the 6’2” Clark is at a height disadvantage in the ring. Yet the 24-year old southpaw gave away five inches in height to the 6’7” Fundora.

Both actually fought like tall fighters, looking to establish their distance—a luxury Clark could afford as each boast an 80” reach. It was a sound strategy by the Cincinnati native given the scouting report; only, Fundora boxed from the outside, working behind a steady jab and catching Clark with long left hands.

Fundora subtly closed the gap in round two, a necessary adjustment as Clark utilized lateral movement in an effort to disrupt his foe’s rhythm. It worked to a degree, catching Fundora with a left hand from the outside while continuing to circle the ring.

Action leveled off in round three, though Fundora continued to come forward without fear of the incoming. Clark turned the tide in round four, moving to his right and away from Fundora’s jab, dropping left hands in return to slow down the towering California-based prospect.

The momentum shift and tactical adjustment proved difficult for Fundora to solve. The 21-year old prospect managed to work his way inside but failed to land anything of consequence once at close quarters. It actually had an adverse effect, as Clark connected with left hands while also mixing in an effective right hook.

That was, until round six when Fundora turned the tide in a big way. Chopping left hands upstairs had Clark briefly in trouble, clinging on to his foe as the two tumbled to the canvas. As action resumed, Clark returned to stick and move style, though moving far more than sticking as Fundora controlled the pace.

It didn’t last long, though, as Clark enjoyed a strong round seven spent mostly on the inside. Fundora fought past round six for the first time in his career, not affected stamina-wise and was still able to connect with left hand shots. However, it came at the expense of Clark landing a fight-best 23 punches in the round.

Fundora’s jab was dialed in for much of round eight, with Clark having to reverse course after getting caught with a few too many left hands. Both had their moments in a competitive round nine, though one which ended with Clark drawing a warning for punching after the bell.

With the fight on the table, Clark returned to what worked best—boxing from the outside and forcing Fundora to come forward. It proved effective enough to beat his man to the punch but not enough to pull off the upset.

Fundora moves to 13-0-1 (9KOs), while Clark’s record now stands at 14-1-1 (7KOs), with just one win in his last three starts.

The bout served as the chief support of a tripleheader live on Fox. Headlining the show, Sanchez’s countryman Erislandy Lara looks to return to the title stage as he faces Mexico’s Ramon Alvarez for a secondary super welterweight title.

Jake Donovan is a senior writer for BoxingScene.com. Twitter: @JakeNDaBox