Stephen Fulton vs Carlos Castro Predictions: Featherweight debut for ‘Cool Boy Steph’

Stephen Fulton goes up a division this Saturday, September 14, when he takes on world-ranked featherweight Carlos Castro. The bout will take place on the Saul Canelo Alvarez vs Edgar Berlanga undercard. The event takes place at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada. DAZN PPV will screen the event.

Here are my Fulton vs Castro predictions as ‘Cool Boy Steph’ heads into uncharted territory.

Fulton has found himself in a position many modern boxers have to navigate at the lower weights. Namely; how does one recover from a knockout loss to pound-for-pound phenom Naoya Inoue? 

Fulton was expected to do better than most against ‘Kaibutsu’. An artful boxer who brought the unified WBC and WBO super bantamweight belts to the table, ‘Cool Boy Steph’ was supposed to push Inoue further than he had ever been.

You know what they say about the best laid plans. Fulton was wiped out in seven rounds by the Japanese wrecking ball. With a decisive loss negating any hope of a rematch, and Inoue going on to scoop all four divisional belts, the only way was up.

So Fulton has taken a year out to acclimatise and now returns as an ambitious featherweight. That ambition is writ large in his choice of opponent here. Rather than dipping a toe into the 126lb waters, Fulton is taking on a fighter in Castro who appears in three of the four major world rankings.

Castro has only been beaten by excellent fighters. A world title on your resume seems to be the entry requirement for a win over the 30-year-old. Former WBC and WBA super bantamweight champion, and Fulton victim, Brandon Figueroa put him out in six rounds. Luis Nery, who put Inoue on the canvas back in May, holds a split decision over Castro.

But since those back-to-back losses, Castro has rebuilt and regrouped. He racked up a pair of knockouts in his next two fights, stopping Alan Castillo in nine rounds and Angel Luna in just 48 seconds. A shutout points win over Belmar Preciado solidified Castro’s comeback, earning him this crack at a big name.

One thing is for sure here; Fulton is in for a fight. Castro loves to engage, is very offence-oriented and will go looking for his man. This will take some getting used to for the former super bantamweight king. Fulton will be getting hit by a fully-fledged featherweight for the first time. It takes time to calibrate not only your own body but to adjust to facing bigger men. Inoue might have hit like a freight train, but Castro is a naturally bigger man than ‘Kaibutsu’.

That strength is felt as much in the clinch as it is from the punches themselves. Fighting a bigger opponent is draining for reasons that go far beyond punch power. The physical toll of the size difference can prove tough to overcome. 

In this case, I back Fulton’s skills to carry him through. Castro’s willingness to engage could play into the hands of ‘Cool Boy Steph’. Fulton has shown he can mix it up in the pocket, as he did in a close win over Figueroa. He can also pick opponents off from distance, as he did against Daniel Roman. That adaptability will be key here. 

Fulton vs Castro Fight Odds

Castro is an 6/1 underdog here. Not a bad price considering his wealth of world class featherweight experience. Fulton is the favourite at 1/9 while the draw is available at 20/1.

Fulton vs Castro Full Card

Saul Canelo Alvarez vs. Edgar Berlanga; WBC, WBA and WBO super middleweight titles Erislandy Lara vs. Danny Garcia; WBA world middleweight title 

Caleb Plant vs. Trevor McCumby; Super middleweight 

Rolando Romero vs. Manuel Jaimes; Super lightweight 

Stephen Fulton vs. Carlos Castro; Featherweight

Fulton vs Castro Prediction

Despite the jump in weight and Castro’s quality, I think Fulton will walk out victorious. His literacy in handling multiple styles will serve him well. Castro will go hunting for ‘Cool Boy Steph’. Fulton can either meet him head on or outbox him.

I think the latter is more likely and I believe Fulton will avoid a firefight to win this one on points. You can back my tip at 2/5.

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