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Brandon Figueroa hopes Pacquiao-Barrios card and this key change puts him back in featherweight title picture
In being outpointed by Stephen Fulton this past February for the second time in five fights, Brandon Figueroa lost the WBC featherweight world championship but gained fresh perspective.
Since then, Figueroa hired revered boxing coach Manny Robles to guide his career, beginning with a fight against Joet Gonzalez at the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas on Saturday night.
Considering the fight is part of the Manny Pacquiao vs. Mario Barrios main card, Figueroa would like nothing more than to deliver an eye-opening performance to put himself back in line for title contention.
During a recent interview with DAZN News, Figueroa believes that mission is off to a solid start.
“It’s my first time working with Manny but I feel like our chemistry is already really great,” Figueroa said. “And we’re just going to capitalize July 19 and show everybody the teamwork.”
Already a fan-friendly volume puncher, Figueroa believes Robles has not revamped his style, but smoothed over some rough edges instead.
“They’re not so much changing my style but implementing into it and adding more to my style — that aggressive style that I have,” the former champion added. “My style has definitely gotten a lot better, a lot stronger, and I can’t wait to showcase that.”
The 28-year-old Figueroa was cooking with victories over Carlos Castro, Mark Magsayo, and Jessie Magdaleno before running into a seasoned, savvy Fulton, who proved to have his number for the second time, handing ‘The Heartbreaker’ a unanimous decision loss in February to snatch the WBC 126-pound title.
Under Robles’ tutelage, Figueroa (25-2-1, 19 KOs) believes his fight-forward style would make for an intriguing clash against WBA featherweight world titleholder Nick Ball, another fighter who pressures. But before he can see such a fight to fruition, he will have to deal with Gonzalez (27-4, 15 KOs) , who is a busy fighter with a high work rate himself.
“I’m here to make the big fights, fight the champions, and make great and exciting fights for the fans,” Figueroa said, adhering to his mission statement upon entering boxing. “July 19, Joet Gonzalez is the perfect dance partner for that.”
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