HIDALGO, TEXAS – Omar “Panterita” Figueroa (25-0-1, 18 KOs) remained undefeated as he put on an exciting show in front of a raucous hometown crowd and earned a unanimous decision over Ricky Burns (37-5-1, 11 KOs) on Premier Boxing Champions on CBS live from State Farm Arena in Hidalgo, Texas.
Figueroa was the sharper fighter who landed harder punches and was able to dictate the pace of the fight. Burns was deducted a point in both the eighth and 11th rounds by the referee for excessive holding. “Panterita” won by scores of 116-110 twice and 117-109.
“We knew it was going to be a tough fight, but I didn’t agree with the deductions for holding. I thought he was holding as much as me and that’s why I had to tie him up.
"We moved up in weight for this one but still had some trouble making weight, but I didn’t want to jeopardize my chance to fight in America.
“I think it was his size that gave me problems more than anything. I don’t know what weight he was in that ring, but it was a lot bigger than me.
“The plan was to try to stick to boxing for the first half of the fight, but once the size really took over I had to stand and exchange more than I would have liked. I couldn’t get him off of me. I’ve got no excuses, as I said the best man will win.
“I always leave everything in the ring and that’s all I can do. I hope everyone who watched enjoyed the fight.
“We’ve enjoyed the experience of being in the U.S., obviously the decision didn’t go our way which puts a damper on it, but overall everyone here in Texas has been great. I want to say a big thank you to everybody. I hope to back again.”
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