Photos by Stacey Verbeek
SAN ANTONIO - Undefeated star Omar "Panterita" Figueroa (25-0-1, 18 KOs), of Weslaco, Texas, returns to take on former world champion Antonio DeMarco (31-5-1, 23 KOs) in a super lightweight battle that headlines Premier Boxing Champions (PBC) on NBC in primetime, Saturday, December 12 from the newly renovated AT&T Center in San Antonio, Texas with televised coverage beginning at 8:30 p.m. ET/5:30 p.m. PT.
PBC on NBC will feature a stacked tripleheader of action featuring multiple exciting heavyweight showdowns. In a battle of undefeated American heavyweights 2012 U.S. Olympian Dominic "Trouble" Breazeale (16-0, 14 KOs) faces "Prince" Charles Martin (22-0-1, 20 KOs) in a 10-round contest and the action continues with hard-hitting Mexican-American Chris "The Nightmare" Arreola (36-4-1, 31 KOs) against Travis "My Time" Kauffman (30-1, 22 KOs) in 10-rounds of action.
"I'm excited to once again be fighting in my home state of Texas, in front of my fans who know what to expect from me," said Figueroa. "I'm going to fight smart, it's going to be exciting and I will slowly break down DeMarco and give the fans and myself a win. I can box straight forward and also trade fire with fire. As we say in Spanish, 'si, se puede', yes we can. I am ready to get in the ring, risk it all and be the man who wins. Don't miss it."
"This will be a very tough fight and will most likely be a war because of our fighting styles," said DeMarco. "I will do everything I can to give a great show and a great fight. My objective is to win."
"Charles Martin has nowhere near the experience I have, it's like night and day," said Breazeale. "I do everything better than him and am in much better condition. I'm looking to end 2015 with a bang and get ready to kick-off my 2016 campaign in style. I want to move toward challenging for a world title."
Tickets for the live event, which is promoted by Leija Battah Promotions, are priced at $220, $112, $85, $58 and $31, not including applicable fees, and are on sale now. Tickets can be purchased online by visiting www.ticketmaster.com, www.attcenter.com or by calling 1-800-745-3000. Tickets can also be purchased by emailing m@leijabattahpromo.com or calling (210) 979-3302.
Figueroa made his 140-pound debut on May 9 when he took down former world champion Ricky Burns in a scintillating toe-to-toe battle that featured great action throughout. The 25-year-old won a 135-pound world title in 2013 when he outslugged Nihito Arakawa in a brutal "Fight of the Year" battle before defending his title against Jerry Belmontes and Daniel Estrada. Born in Weslaco, Texas, he is looking to continue his impressive rise to the top of the 140-pound division.
A former world champion in the lightweight division, the 29-year-old DeMarcosteps back into the ring in San Antonio on December 12. Fighting out of Los Mochis, Sinaloa, Mexico, he owns victories over John Molina Jr. and Jorge Linares. He looks to take advantage of another shot at one of the best in the game as he takes on the undefeated Figueroa.
Since representing the U.S. at the 2012 Olympics, Breazealehas been nearly perfect in recording knockouts as a pro, having only gone the distance in two fights, including his last contest which saw him defeat the very difficult Fred Kassi in another primetime NBC battle. The 30-year-old played quarterback at the University of Northern Colorado before he began boxing and looks to keep his undefeated record intact on December 12 when he faces the toughest challenge of his career in a fellow undefeated American. In 2015 the Glendale, California native recorded stoppages over Victor Brisbal and Yasmany Consuegra before taking down Kassi.
Born in St. Louis, Missouri, but fighting out of Carson, California, Martin has stopped his last 11 opponents within the distance. The 29-year-old who stopped Vicente Sandez in September, looks to remain undefeated against Breazeale.
Making his first appearance in San Antonio, Arreola will fight in front of the passionate Texas boxing fans for the second straight time after earning a draw against Fred Kassi on July 18 in El Paso. On March 13 he was victorious against Curtis Harper in an outstanding slugfest that featured excellent back-and-forth action throughout. A native of Riverside, Calif., Arreola has challenged the top heavyweights over the last decade and is regarded as one of the most feared punchers in the division.
