SPORTSCLOPEDIA 18: MARK MAGSAYO BATTLES BRANDON FIGUEROA ON MARCH 4
By Maloney L. Samaco
PhilBoxing.com
Mon, 23 Jan 2023
Mark Magsayo and Brandon Figueroa are now in the final stages of processing a contract for a featherweight bout in the U.S. on March 4 as reported by ESPN.
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Figueroa (23-1-1, 18 KOs) was initially penciled to clash with Stephen Fulton in a rematch after the WBC ordered the bout for the interim featherweight title.
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Figueroa lost by majority decision to Fulton on November 27, 2021 at Park MGM, Paradise, Nevada, U.S.A. in a WBC/WBO super bantamweight title unification. It was an action-filled fight worthy of a rematch.
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But Fulton is now in negotiation for a fight with pound-for-pound rated fighter Naoya Inoue in Japan at super bantamweight. Figueroa is now scheduled to fight Magsayo in a showdown of former world champions.
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Figueroa, age 26, of Weslaco, Texas, moved up to featherweight and stopped Carlos Castro by TKO6 on July 9, 2022 at Alamodome, San Antonio, Texas, U.S.A.
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Magsayo (24-1, 16 KOs) won the WBC featherweight title on January 22, 2022 at Borgata, Atlantic City, New Jersey, USA with a great upset, a majority-decision win over seven-year featherweight champion Gary Russell Jr.
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Magsayo, age 27, of Tagbilaran City, Bohol, lost the WBC featherweight title to Rey Vargas via split decision on July 9, 2022 at Alamodome, San Antonio, Texas, USA. It was an exciting fight because he floored Vargas in Round 9.
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The winner of the Magsayo-Figueroa tussle will be promoted as the full champion once Rey Vargas decides to vacate and campaign in the super featherweight division.
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Vargas will fight O’Shaquie Foster for the vacant WBC super featherweight title in Las Vegas on February 11. In case of victory, Vargas will give up the WBC featherweight crown. If Vargas loses, he could go back to the featherweight division and defend his WBC title.
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Whatever Vargas decides to do, Magsayo will defeat Figueroa at all cost. The Vargas loss persuaded Magsayo to transfer from the Wild Card Gym to the Brickhouse Gym, also in Los Angeles. Marvin Somodio trains him now alongside conditioning coach Pedro Garcia.
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Magsayo fought seven fights in the US, winning six of them and losing his title to Vargas. Of his 16 wins by KO, seven were done in the first round. Dubbed as “The Heartbreaker,” Brandon Figueroa is the younger brother of former WBC lightweight champion Omar Figueroa.
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Brandon Lee “The Heartbreaker,” Figueroa held the WBC super bantamweight title between May 2021 to November 2021 and the WBA (Regular) super bantamweight title from 2019 to November 2021.
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Figueroa faced Yonfrez Parejo for the vacant WBA interim super bantamweight title on April 20, 2019, at the Dignity Health Sports Park in Carson, California, USA. Figueroa won the fight by an eight-round stoppage.
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He defeated Luis Nery by KO7 on May 15, 2021 at Dignity Health Sports Park, Carson, California, USA and retained his WBA (Regular) super bantamweight title, winning the WBC super bantamweight title.
Click here to view a list of other articles written by Maloney L. Samaco.
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