NEWS: STEPHEN FULTON VS. BRANDON FIGUEROA 2 IN FEBRUARY; SHAVKAT RAKHIMOV VS. JOE CORDINA IN APRIL

By: Jay Calderon

According to Dan Rafael's Fight Freak newsletter (subscribe here), the long-anticipated rematch between unbeaten Stephen Fulton and former titlist Brandon Figueroa will take place as part of a Showtime tripleheader on February 25.

Back in November of 2021, the pair fought to a highly-entertaining majority decision, which Fulton ultimately won. It was the first and, thus far, only loss in the career of Figueroa. With the win, Fulton unified a portion of the Jr. Featherweight division.

After the contest, the pair were still heated, and many predicted a quick turnaround in respects to a rematch. However, there will be 16 months between bouts when the pair presumably meet next month.

Since their initial encounter, Fulton has fought just once, scoring a unanimous decision over Daniel Roman in June of last year, successfully defending his gold. Figueroa, similarly, has also fought just once, stopping Carlos Castro in six rounds back in July in his Jr. Featherweight debut. Fulton will be making his 126 pound debut in the Figueroa contest.

In the co-featured bout of the evening, Subriel Matias will battle Jeremias Ponce for a vacant portion of the Jr. Welterweight gold. The third encounter has yet to be disclosed.

One of the better cards of the new year, with two legitimate fights that could theoretically go either way. If Showtime is able to ensure the third bout is solid in it's own right, it could make for a very fun night of boxing.

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On April 22, an interesting Jr. Lightweight clash will take place between former titlist Joe Cordina and current champion Shavkat Rakhimov at the Motorpoint Arena in Cardiff, Wales.

The pair were initially meant to meet late last year when Cordina was the champion, but Joe was forced to withdraw from the contest with a hand injury. As a result, he was stripped of the gold, and Rakhimov was able to secure the vacant belt in a win over Zelfa Barrett via nine round stoppage.

Professional fighter Felix Cash, a fighter that trains with Cordina, originally leaked the news to International Boxing News in an interview posted to their YouTube channel.

While the bout wasn't specifically mentioned, Cash stated Cordina will be "fighting for his world title", which seems to strongly suggest the bout in question is the Rakhimov encounter.

Cordina, 15-0 in the paid ranks, and Rakhimov, 17-0-1 as a professional, will likely be each other's toughest tests. Considering their exciting but different styles, one can imagine the contest will be an exciting one.

The bout will air on DAZN.

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