Stephen Fulton had to wait several months to get a crack at the WBO’s junior featherweight belt. When he finally got his opportunity on Saturday, Fulton didn’t squander it.
The Philadelphia native knocked off Angelo Leo via unanimous decision to win the title.
In a bout that wasn’t short on action, Fulton used a high work rate to win a 118-110, 119-11, 119-111 against the defending champion. The matchup between the previously undefeated 26-year-olds was delayed twice by COVID-19.
The two men were initially slated to meet last August before Fulton contracted the virus and experienced severe enough symptoms that didn’t allow him to start fully training until October. The title fight was postponed again in December after Leo tested positive for the virus.
But based on the way their fight went, any adverse effects were impossible to detect.
Fulton and Leo combined for more than 2,000 punches, according to Showtime’s stats, with Fulton throwing more than 1,100 of those. Initially, it appeared as if it the fight was going to be close for all 12 rounds.
Leo (20-1, 9 KOs) found some success in the early rounds with some hooks that landed on the outside. Fulton (19-0, 8 KOs) changed his game plan accordingly. Coming into the bout, Leo was known for working on the inside. But as the fight entered the middle rounds, Fulton did most of his damage in close quarters and smothered Leo’s attack.
Ra’eese Aleem had no problems getting past Victor Pasillas in the final undercard bout of the TV card. Aleem scored an 11th-round technical knockout after he sent Pasillas to the floor with an alternating hook combination that sealed a dominant performance.
Aleem (18-0, 12 KOs) scored four knockdowns against Pasillas (17-1, 10 KOs) in a continuous onslaught. Aleem’s first knockdown came on a looping right hook in the second round that buzzed Pasillas’ face and left him hurt for the rest of the round.
Lightweight prospect Rolando Romero remained undefeated with a seventh-round stoppage against Avery Sparrow in the opening bout of the televised card.
Romero (13-0, 11 KOs) scored a knockdown in the opening minute off a big left hook. Sparrow survived the rest of the round and tried to counter Romero’s aggression by landing a big power punch.
Romero, who was up 60-51 on all three scorecards at the time of the stoppage, controlled the action the rest of the night. Sparrow’s corner stopped the bout one round after it appeared he suffered a right knee injury.
Sparrow (10-3, 3 KOs) was a late replacement after Justin Pauldo failed to make the 135-pound limit. According to the TV broadcast, Pauldo’s weight was so high that doctors did not allow him to participate.