Alamodome, San Antonio, USA. In the WBC featherweight eliminator (up to 57.2 kg), the former world champion American Brandon Figueroa (23-1-1, 18 KOs) prematurely beat fellow prospect Carlos Castro (27-2, 12 KOs).
Both lost in previous fights: Castro lost to ex-champion in two divisions Luis Neri, and Figueroa lost in unification to Stephen Fulton.
Figueroa did not immediately try to impose a violent confrontation. He surprised with positional boxing and even confused the opponent by changing stances. Castro responded in kind and shot in the 2nd round – he met well with blows to the body. The favorite was forced to return to what he does best – breaking with brute force and incredible tonnage.
In the 3rd round, Castro was already rubbing the ropes of the ring with might and main in an attempt to escape from the aggressor. He took punches and was knocked down. Then he survived under the bombardment almost to the gong. The referee was there and was close to stopping the fight.
.@BrandonLeeFig UNLOADS on Castro and scores a knockdown in the 3rd #MagsayoVargas pic.twitter.com/iKoZtVrj58
— SHOWTIME Boxing (@ShowtimeBoxing) July 10, 2022
Castro did not just return to the fight, but gave out a fantastic 5th round: he took the fight at close range, outplayed due to the angles of attacks and the incessant bombardment with unaccented strikes.
In the next three minutes, he was carried away by success – he tried to pinch Figueroa at the ropes. He agreed to the slugfest, seized the initiative, turned Castro around and kneaded him to the referee’s go-ahead.
@BrandonLeeFig turns Castro into the ropes and finishes him in the 6th #MagsayoVargas pic.twitter.com/LjBaBB1ZZ0
— SHOWTIME Boxing (@ShowtimeBoxing) July 10, 2022
Cool fight!
Figueroa TKO 6.
