On July 19, former WBC World Featherweight Champion Brandon Figueroa will make his comeback, facing WBO No. 4 ranked contender Gonzalez. The bout will be part of the Pacquiao vs. Barrios event.

Former WBC World Featherweight Champion Brandon Figueroa (USA, 25-2-1, 19 KOs) will return to the ring on July 19 (July 20 Japan time) as part of the Premier Boxing Champions event at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas, USA. The main event will feature 46-year-old former eight-division world champion Manny Pacquiao (Philippines, 62-8-2, 39 KOs) challenging WBC World Welterweight Champion Mario Barrios (USA, 29-2-1, 18 KOs) for his title.

Figueroa, currently ranked No. 3 by the WBC and No. 5 by the WBA at featherweight, will face WBO No. 4 and WBC No. 10 ranked contender Joet Gonzalez (USA, 27-4, 15 KOs).

Figueroa captured the WBC World Super Bantamweight title on May 15, 2021 (May 16 Japan time), at Dignity Health Sports Park in Carson, California, when he knocked out Luis Nery (Mexico, 36-2, 28 KOs) with a brilliant left body shot in the 7th round.

However, Figueroa lost his WBC title on November 27, 2021 (November 28 Japan time), in a unification bout against WBO World Super Bantamweight Champion Stephen Fulton (USA, 23-1, 8 KOs) held at the Park MGM in Las Vegas. Figueroa was defeated by majority decision with scores of 116-112, 116-112, and 114-114.

After moving up in weight, Figueroa captured the WBC Interim Featherweight Title on March 4, 2023 (March 5 Japan time), at the Toyota Arena in Ontario, California, by defeating Mark Magsayo (Philippines, 27-2, 18 KOs) via wide unanimous decision over 12 rounds.

On May 4 last year (May 5 Japan time), he made his first successful title defense with a 9th-round KO victory over Jessie Magdaleno (USA, 30-3, 19 KOs) at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas. Figueroa was later elevated to full champion status, setting up a rematch against Fulton, who returned as challenger on February 1 this year (February 2 Japan time), again at the T-Mobile Arena.

After losing to Naoya Inoue (Ohashi Gym) and moving up to featherweight, Fulton made his comeback on September 14 last year (September 15 Japan time) at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas, where he faced Carlos Castro (USA, 30-3, 14 KOs), who had previously suffered a 6th-round TKO loss to Figueroa.

Fulton was knocked down in the fifth round by a right straight and came close to a KO loss. He was also rocked by a left hook and right straight in the eighth round but managed to survive and earned a split decision victory. With that win, he secured a title shot against Figueroa in his next fight.

Ahead of his rematch with Fulton, Figueroa confidently stated, “I’m definitely in my prime right now. I feel strong, and I can’t wait to show everything in the ring.” The odds were leaning in Figueroa’s favor. However, in their rematch held on February 1 (February 2 Japan time) at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas, Figueroa was completely outclassed and lost by unanimous decision over 12 rounds, relinquishing his title.

Figueroa’s upcoming opponent, Joet Gonzalez, holds two amateur victories over Gervonta Davis (USA), but has failed to win in all three of his previous world title attempts and had fallen out of the world rankings. However, he made a comeback on March 8 (March 9 Japan time) at Thunder Studios in Long Beach, California, where he defeated then-WBO No. 2 ranked featherweight Arnold Khegai (Ukraine, 22-2-1, 14 KOs) by 10-round decision, regaining momentum in the division.

Joet Gonzalez, 31, last fought on September 15, 2023 (September 16 Japan time), when he challenged IBF World Featherweight Champion Luis Alberto Lopez (Mexico, 30-3, 17 KOs) at the American Bank Center in Corpus Christi, Texas, but lost by decision. His upcoming bout marks his return since that defeat.

This will be a do-or-die battle for both fighters in their quest for another world title shot. The outcome largely depends on whether Figueroa has recovered from his poor performance against Fulton, where he failed to show any offensive spark. If he loses here, his future prospects could be seriously jeopardized.

Should Figueroa manage to regain his previous form, many expect his versatile and aggressive style to overwhelm Gonzalez. But the question remains—can he bounce back?

If it turns into a survival battle, Figueroa seems likely to come in well-conditioned and ready.

This article has been translated and published with permission from BOXING MASTER.

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