Darius “DFG” Fulghum will see action on November 2 in Las Vegas when he fights the southpaw Chris Pearson over 10 rounds.
The super middleweights will fight at Virgin Hotels. The 12-0 (10 KOs) Fulghum, from Houston, was last seen defeating Vaughn Alexander in Indio, California in June.
The prospect is still learning, and not looking to rush into big fights, and therefore in no hurry to call out the likes of Saul "Canelo" Alvarez, Edgar Berlanga, Christian Mbilli, or Lester Martinez.
“I’m not a matchmaker and I don’t pick-and-choose who I fight,” Fulghum said. “I trust my promoter and manager to guide my career. I fight who they put in with me. Nobody knows what 'Canelo' is going to do. He had all four [world title] belts, but he just gave up the IBF. He could retire and open up all the titles in my division. I want to be in position to grab one of those belts, putting my name up there to fight for a belt.
“I do not call anybody out. I don’t deserve to fight Canelo right now; I don’t deserve it right now and would look foolish by calling him out. I haven’t earned it yet. I don’t target other fighters because I don’t want to be perceived as picking and choosing my opponent. I just do my job in the ring. I enjoy what I do, I love it. I feel that I can compete with Canelo and beat anybody else in my division.”
Fulghum is guided by 3 Point Management and promoted by Golden Boy. Coached by Darnell Pierce, he has also entered the WBA rankings.
“I was the first one on my team to see that I was No. 7 in the WBA [he had not previously been rated and has since moved up to No. 6] and I jumped up on my couch screaming about being recognized by one of the four major sanctioning bodies. I still have to fight some of the [world-rated] fighters, but this is a dream come true for me. I was surprised by it [being rated so quickly] but not surprised because, all along, I wanted to crack the top 10 this year.”
Pearson is 17-4-1 (12 KOs) but Fulgham is full of confidence as an improving fighter.
“My skills have improved since I’ve been a pro for three years,” Fulghum added. “But the most improvements I’ve made is to better understand myself and the process like how to cut weight the best way; changing my diet; fight-night routine; cut off distractions and other things like that because there’s a big difference between fighting as an amateur and pro. I want to be a legend in boxing.”
Fulghum was rated first in the USA at heavyweight in the amateurs while earning a nursing degree from Prairie View A & M University.