WBC featherweight champion Brandon Figueroa wants to be more patient and use his boxing skills for his rematch with Stephen Fulton Jr. on February 1st.
(Credit: Esther Lin and Ryan Hafey/Premier Boxing Champions)
Fulton (25-1-1, 19 KOs) feels that he smothered his power by fighting in close, looking to slug in his 12-round majority decision to Fulton three years ago on November 27, 2021, and he doesn’t want to make those same mistakes again.
Things are different now than in the first fight. Fulton (22-1, 8 KOs) was knocked out by Naoya Inoue in the eighth round last year in July, and he looked like the shell of himself coming off a 14-month layoff to defeat Carlos Castro by a 10-round split decision on September 14th.
Fulton rocked in the fifth round, was sent to the canvas, and hurt additional times against the non-puncher. That fight showed that there may be remnants from Fulton’s knockout loss to Inoue still lingering, impairing his ability to take a hard punch or even a not-so-hard one like the ones Casto was hitting him with.
Fulton is 30 now and has had a long 10-year career, and he’s not at the level he was when he beat Figueroa three years ago.
“I feel like I pressed him too much that I smothered myself. I can box. I have other abilities that I didn’t showcase in that fight [Fulton],” said Brandon Figueroa to Fight Hub TV, talking about his February 1st rematch with Stephen Fulton.
Punch Stats for Figueroa-Fulton Jr. 1
– Figueroa landed 314 of 1060 punches for a 30%
– Fulton Jr. was 247 of 668 for 37%
“I feel like I’m going to showcase everything. I’m going to show why I’m the best 126-pounder and just go out there and make a statement. Take a little step back, be more patient, and trust in my boxing ability a little bit more,” said Figueroa about what he felt he should have done against Fulton the first time around.
Figueroa will have to use more of his boxing ability if he wants to avoid being outboxed again by Fulton. If Figueroa’s power has improved, he could duplicate what Inoue did to Fulton by landing a hard headshot to knock him out, but it will require speed and accuracy.
Figueroa’s last three fights:
– Jesse Magdaleno
– Mark Magsayo
– Carlos Castro
“This time around, I know what I must do. I’m going to work in this training camp for it. He’s a great fighter. This is my division, and I want to prove that. Naoya is one of the best, and I’m in this sport to fight the best,” said Figueroa on whether he’d like to fight Naoya Inoue.
“Me beating him would elevate me to one of the pound-for-pound best. I’ve been getting a lot of comments from people. Even the ones that thought Fulton won last time they’re rooting for me now. I’m a very exciting, aggressive fighter. I know Stephen Fulton is going to be very well-prepared and we’re going to give fans a great show,” said Figueroa.
Stephen Fulton’s recent contests
– Carlos Castro
– Naoya Inoue
– Daniel Romanuch