Brandon Figueroa Stops Carlos Castro to Win WBC Title Eliminator!
On July 9, in a WBC 126-pound title eliminator, former WBC and WBA Regular 122-pound champion Brandon “Heartbreaker” Figueroa (23-1-1, 17KOs) took on Carlos Castro (27-2, 12KOs). The winner of this fight would set themselves up to face the winner of the Mark Magsayo versus Rey Vargas WBC featherweight title fight at some point down the line.
Figueroa came into this fight looking to put the heartbreaking majority decision loss to Stephen Fulton in their unification bout last November behind him. Prior to losing his WBC belt to Fulton, he savagely stopped Luis Nery in seven rounds to win the green belt. However, now with him fighting in a new weight class, he’ll look to become a two-division world champion.
Castro, on the other hand, was looking to get back into the win column after losing his first career fight by split decision to, ironically, Luis Nery back in February. In the Nery fight, Castro showcased the ability to box and displayed that he had enough power to keep his opponents mindful.
STARTING OFF WITH EQUAL FOOTING
The opening round between these two fighters was pretty even. Figueroa came out as usual with his busy work rate and body punching. But Castro wouldn’t be outdone as he utilized his jab to set up a body attack of his own. In round two, both guys picked up the pace a little more, as Heartbreaker continued his pressure. However, it would be Castro who did excellent work on the body as well as on the inside, with some nice right uppercuts.
Round three was huge for Figueroa as he punished, hurt and dropped Castro. After rising to his feet, Castro elected to stay on the ropes and allow the former 122-pound champion to get his offense off.
CASTRO TAKES CONTROL BUT DOESN’T
After recovering nicely from the third round beating he took, Castro would start to have success as he would start to let his hands go more frequently while keeping Figueroa off balance with his footwork. This continued for the next couple of rounds.
Then came round six! Both men were engaged, with Castro getting the better of the two on the ropes. Figueroa would abruptly spin off the ropes, pinning Castro along them and launching nearly ten unanswered shots. This would cause the referee to jump in and stop the fight. With the win, Figueroa is now in line for a shot at the WBC featherweight title.
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By: Jerrell Fletcher
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