Stephen Fulton Remains Upbeat Despite His Defeat, Inoue’s Next Steps

Stephen Fulton remained in good spirits despite losing his WBC & WBO super bantamweight titles to Naoya Inoue.

The American was dominated in a one-sided bout, as the Japanese stopped Fulton in the eighth round.

Victory put Inoue in line for an undisputed fight with Marlon Tapales, the current WBA and IBF champion. As for Fulton, it was the first defeat of his career in a fight where he promised much, but delivered little. 

Despite this being the case, Fulton remained optimistic about his chances moving forward. 

“I’m not feeling bad because I’m a champion no matter what. I’m very disappointed in my performance, but I can’t allow that to dictate who I am as a person. I went out like a man, so I hold my head up like a man. “He was how I expected. It was just me,” Fulton 

Ultimately, it was an opportunity missed as Fulton’s gun-shy nature came back to haunt him. The reluctance to throw the right hand proved crucial, as when Fulton attacked with it, he did have some success.

While there is every chance that Fulton will bounce back, he ultimately fell short at elite level. And there is no getting away from that.

Naturally, Inoue is targeting the undisputed championship next with Tapales. And according to reports, this could happen at the back end of the year.

Both fighters had expressed a willingness to fight each other, when Tapales entered the ring to face Inoue.

Inoue’s Comments 

“Last year, I became an undisputed champion. I returned all the belts and came up to super bantamweight. Everything I was thinking about was to fight [Fulton] this year.

“Unfortunately, I got an injury and had to postpone this fight. I’m sorry to my team but thank you so much to Fulton for accepting this fight and I’m so happy right now. Let’s do this [Tapales],” Inoue

This would provide Inoue the opportunity to make history by becoming undisputed in a second-weight class following his achievements at bantamweight. 

With that being said, a fight appears probable. 

“The two men meet inside the ring in Tokyo for the first of what will likely be many face-offs. The word that we’re hearing is a likely fight for undisputed at junior featherweight [122] could come in November of this year. That is assuming Inoue won [against Fulton]. You got more than just a win,” Tim Bradley

Pacquiao’s Praise 

Manny Pacquiao has praised Naoya Inoue for stopping Stephen Fulton to become a four-division champion. 

The Japanese blew away the much bigger Fulton, who had promised to put up a fight. The speed, power, jab and explosive combinations unsettled Fulton, who was reluctant to let his hands go in fear of what could come back.

That ultimately cost the American in the eighth-round, as an overhand right and left hook sent Fulton to the ground. Despite beating the count, a flurry of punches followed which ended with a left to the chin. 

Inoue’s performances drew comparisons with Pacquiao, as the latter’s ability to move up weight classes and carry his speed/power was embodied by the Japanese. 

“He is now just the 22nd man to be a four-division champion in the history of boxing. There have only been 22nd of them, and he is now one of them.

“There have only been three men that have done it while having the bantamweight and junior featherweight world championships.

“He is the third and is now 10-0 against the world champions. In world championship fights, he is 20-0 with 18 knockouts.” I’ve never thought the boxing world would bring another Manny Pacquiao-ish type of person.

“I think when you look at Inoue in how he’s traveled up these distances, up these weight classes, I feel like he can travel up as many weight classes as he likes,” Tim Bradley

With that being said, Pacquiao came out to praise the star. Pacquiao is an eight-division champion, who equally worked his way up from the lower weight classes to rack up the titles.

Although Inoue still has some way to go before he reaches the level of ‘Pacman,’ the latter recognized the special capabilities that the Japanese possessed. 

“Inoue has great speed and lots of power behind his punches. He’s a special fighter,” Pacquiao

Inoue will have to consider his next steps carefully to map out his future. The star is a well-known name in Japan, but his impressive victories are resonating across the pond.

And if he can keep on getting titles as he moves up, mega fights at the higher weight classes in the US will follow. As for Fulton, the American will have to go back to the drawing board.

With that being said, both fighters still have plenty to prove.

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