
ABOUT THE FIGHTERS
Omar Figueroa became the WBC Lightweight Champion on July 27, 2013 after winning a unanimous decision against Japanese champion Nihito Arakawa in Figueroa’s home state of Texas. The bout was a 12-round, brutal but fan-friendly fight that resulted in both fighters taking the rest of 2013 off.
A hand injury suffered in his bout against Arakawa forced Figueroa to withdraw from his scheduled March title defense against Canelo Alvarez’s older brother, Ricardo Alvarez. This led to Figueroa scheduling an April 26, 2014 bout against former amateur boxing rival Jerry Belmontes.