Brandon Figueroa believes Luis Nery is making a mistake by fighting him on his turf Saturday on Showtime.
No, not the junior featherweight contender’s geographical turf. They’re meeting on neutral ground in Carson, Calif. We’re talking about his divisional territory. Figueroa is a natural 122-pounder, Nery maybe not.
Nery (31-0, 24 KOs) outpointed Aaron Alameda to win the WBC junior featherweight title in September but wasn’t as dominating as he had been at 118. The Mexican will be making his first defense.
“Nery is going to learn a lot about me on Saturday night,” Figueroa said on a Zoom call with reporters. “My size will definitely help me. I feel like he hasn’t fought a guy this big, this strong, and he’s going to find out on Saturday night.
“I know Luis Nery comes to fight,” he added later. “He’s a strong fighter at the 118-pound division but the 122-pound division is a different story.”
Nery, whose knockout streak ended at 11 in the Alameda fight, dismisses any talk about size or punching power at his new weight. He blamed his so-so performance on poor training and Alameda’s technical style.
He said on the Zoom call that he plans to attack Figueroa like the Nery of old. That’s fine with the challenger, who relies on conditioning, toughness and high-volume punching to win fights. That formula has been effective thus far but he hasn’t faced anyone of Nery’s caliber.
Figueroa (21-0-1, 16 KOs) is about a 2½-1 underdog.
“I’ve trained tremendously for this fight,” said Figueroa, who is coming off a 10th-round knockout of Damien Vazquez on the same card Nery won his belt. “I have the best conditioning in the 122-pound division. My volume output speaks for itself and I feel like a lot of people underestimate me.
“After Saturday night, they won’t. Once the bell rings, it’s go-time and I come to fight. I come one hundred percent and I’m coming to take that belt home.”
The winner on Saturday is expected to face undefeated WBO champion Stephen Fulton in a title-unification bout in September.
Of course, Figueroa won’t look past Nery. He understands the challenge he’ll face at Dignity Health Sports Park. At the same time, he acknowledged that he has had an eye on the gifted Fulton.
“If it goes my way, Stephen Fulton is next and that’s a fight that I’ve been wanting for a long time,” Figueroa said. “It’s time to unify. If that’s not what you come to boxing for, then what are you in boxing for?
“… I just can’t wait for these big fights and these big names.”
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