Omar Figueroa offers Errol Spence Jr. Chance at “redemption”

By Boxing News - 01/25/2018 - Comments

Image: Omar Figueroa offers Errol Spence Jr. Chance at “redemption”

By Jaime Ortega: As the Premier Boxing Champions kicked yesterday in New York to showcase the next fights available for the year, a few details sparked my attention after all the boxers rounded up in their podiums as the fights were announced. Omar Figueroa walked right next to Errol Spence and Spence looked right at him, as Figueroa waited to face-off Adrien Broner. Then after his face-off Figueroa walked right next to Spence, and stand right next to him without saying a word. That scene captured the scene of the event among other curious moments.

Omar Figueroa Jr. said on a recent interview that Errol Spence Jr. “We are both from Texas, they saw the possibility of fighting down the line this year which would be a bad ass fight.” Figueroa added, “I will give him a chance to get redemption cause I beat him in 2007 amateurs in the golden gloves championship, and that probably prevented him from going to the Olympics in 2008 because that year they were taking the winner of golden gloves tournament… I ended up beating him up, so I won the Texas championship.”

Whereas most boxers hesitate in their speech when ‘Spence’ is mentioned, probably nervous and somewhat afraid to square off with him in the ring. You could almost watch the arrogant-coldness and sarcasm of Figueroa, calmly conversing without fear how we would love to give Spence “redemption.”

As Spence moved up to the welterweight division destroying opponent after opponent, he has called many boxers out including the likes of Keith Thurman, Danny Garcia, Timothy Bradley and pretty much the entire welterweight division. But one fighter he never mentions and never called out in his wait for greatness is Figueroa. His name is rarely mentioned in his camp.

Figueroa will fight against Adrien Broner on April 21. The fight promises to be exciting and Broner will have to be on his ‘A’ game to defeat the Texan. Most people believe Broner will lose badly – I believe he will decapitate the once Ohioan boxing promise– considering how Figueroa brutally dismantled Robert Guerrero – no one is ever toyed Guerrero in similar fashion.

Both Figueroa and Spence fight very similarly with a Texas style boxing. They both use the jab to bait and rush inside packing tremendous power punches to break the will of their opponents, and once inside its game over. Figueroa targets more the head and the face with devastating uppercuts, while Spence targets more the body with vicious hooks, but despite the small technical differences both fight akin and are forces to be reckon with in the welterweight division. According to Figueroa, Mikey Garcia’s camp was hesitant to make the fight happen and ended up fighting Sergey Lipinetz instead.

A lot of boxers are hesitant to fight Figueroa after his display against Guerrero, so expect a lot of ducking from other boxers at 140. It is the same with Spence, not a lot of boxers want to eat BBQ style Texas ribs a la Carte the way he performed after ‘ring-blinding’ Lamont Peterson.

Figueroa vs Spence is a fight meant to materialize sooner than later, it is the dark wild card of boxing and not a lot of people expect these two boxers to eventually square-off in the ring. If the fight comes into fruition it will be brutal. Figueroa can absorb punches as he unloads the truck, the same as Spence. It will be a 50-50 and both boxers are big welterweights.

One thing is clear, not only is Figueroa calling Spence out, but he doesn’t have any fear whatsoever of his fellow Texan boxing partner.

For more on my comments please go to

https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCRwlNU42p5QNq2-QQ0bGmmw

YouTube video