It’s best not to pull into Omar “Panterita” Figueroa Jr.’s parking space located in front of Pantera’s Boxing Gym in Weslaco.
At least that’s what the sign in front of “Panterita’s” parking spot warns. Violators are in danger of receiving a knockout punch from the former WBC world lightweight champion who boasts a 26-0-1 record with 18 KOs.
Actually, “Panterita” won’t be in town to use his parking stall for the next month or so as he took off last week for Indio, California, where he’ll be involved in a training camp under the guidance of trainer Joel Diaz, who was once an accomplished pro boxer himself.
Still, it’s probably wise to avoid parking in “Panterita’s” spot.
Figueroa Jr. is preparing for a July 15 fight at 147 pounds against Californian Robert Guerrero (33-5-1, 18 KOs), who is also a former world champion. It will be the 12-round main event of a Premier Boxing Champions card at renovated Nassau Coliseum in Uniondale, New York The fight is scheduled to be televised live on Fox Sports and Fox Deportes.
“Panterita” hasn’t fought since Dec. 12, 2015, mainly due to injuries.
“I’ve experienced the feeling of having a training camp so many times before,” Figueroa Jr. said last week. “I’m just glad I have (fight preparation) work to do and that I can get back in there.
“First off, I apologize to everyone for not letting it be known (more) that I was going to take a break (after my last fight 18 months ago),” he added. “A lot of people thought that I had retired, but I’m way too young to retire. I’m barely hitting my prime.”
“Panterita” said he decided after his last bout that he didn’t want to fight unless he was completely healthy. He has dealt with injury problems, including some to his hands. He says they’re fine now.
“The only thing is I had a lot of injuries, and I think (a lot of) my fans know that,” Figueroa Jr. said. “It’s tough to compete at a world-class level when you’re not even close to 100 percent. The break I took was because I was getting frustrated mentally knowing I was going up against the toughest guys in the world (in my weight class) while not being fully healthy. If a fighter’s not 100 percent, it’s very tough to compete at that level.
“Now that I’ve taken that break, I feel great,” “Panterita” added. “My hands feel great and my body feels great. It feels rested and ready, so I’m excited to get back into the ring.”
Also, it was announced last week that super bantamweight Brandon Lee “Heartbreaker” Figueroa (12-0, nine KOs), “Panterita’s” younger brother, has been added to the undercard of the July 15 show in New York.
Sometime this week, Brandon is scheduled to join his brother for training camp at Indio, California, also with Diaz as his trainer.
“I’m probably even a little more excited about seeing my brother fight again than I am about my own fight (on the July 15 card),” said Brandon, who is coming off a May 2 win by unanimous decision in California. “It’s definitely going to be a special day with both of us fighting on the same card again. It’s going to be great.”
When “Panterita” last fought Dec. 12, 2015, at San Antonio’s AT&T Center, Brandon boxed on the undercard of that show. The brothers also fought on the same card May 9, 2015, at Hidalgo’s State Farm Arena.
UPCOMING
Harlingen cruiserweight/heavyweight Raphael Murphy (11-1, nine KOs) is scheduled to fight Saturday in the Dominican Republic. Murphy was going to fight two weekends ago at the Hammond Civic Center in Hammond, Indiana, but his newly scheduled bout in the Dominican Republic replaces the earlier one.
The STFC 43 mixed martial arts cage fighting show is scheduled Aug. 25 at McAllen Convention Center. Pro fighters weighing 155, 140 and 135 pounds, preferably from Texas, are sought for the show. For more information, call (956) 414-8698 or (956) 562-2622.
