”Oh Definitely!” Omar Figueroa told thaboxingvoice.com with confidence when he was being asked if he is still willing to be in grueling wars after having several hand injuries in the last 12 months. The WBC lightweight champion is currently in training for his upcoming title defense against Mexican Daniel Estrada on august 16 at the Stubhub center in Carson, California.
In contrast to his previous training camps, the Mexican-American champion isn’t training with Joel Diaz this time. ”It”s not about not being with Joel Diaz, but it’s about not leaving my daughter behind for two months,” Figueroa explained to us. He later added, ”I would rather risk my career, than risk the relationship with my daughter.”
Instead of training far away from home with Joel Diaz, he is now training in Texas with his father. And his father isn’t the only family member in camp Omar explained, ”Everybody is coming to the gym with me. My mother is even helping me with my hand therapy. Even though i miss training with Joel and the guys, this is a million times better.”
While Figueroa did acknowledge that he is not getting the same quality of sparring he was getting with Joel Diaz, he explained that it didn’t have a big impact on his preparation for his upcoming fight. ”I wasn’t going to risk my hands in sparring anyway. I focus more on cardio and conditioning this time around”. Figueroa continued, ”i save my hands for fight night. We are shifting the momentum in a different way.”
Despite massive improvements, the champion admitted that his hands are still not completely healthy. But he believes it is part of the profession he is in. ”No fighter is 100% healthy. We put our bodies through so much. We are taking so many risks. Accidents happen’.”
The title defense against Estrada will be Figueroa’s 25th fight. All 24 previous bouts have taken place in the lightweight division. whether this will be his last fight at the 135-pound limit is uncertain. ”It depends on how i feel at the weigh inn,” he explained. “I never really believed it when they told me this would happen. But my body is really maturing. I’m getting bigger.
What is certain is that the champion will provide the same kind of action fight fans are used to when he steps in the ring. Even though he is aware that for the longevity of his career he does have to fight smarter, he made it clear that his intentions for August 16 will be the same as they were in his previous fights. ”I’m not going to back down. I’m going to attack him.” Figueroa told thaboxingvoice.com. He added, “He said he is going to attack me too. So we are going to see who the strongest is. We are going to see who has the biggest balls. My prediction is that i will stop him early.”
