Amidst one of the best cards of 2025, this weekend in San Antonio, Texas, one fight stands out above the rest. Former unified junior featherweight champion and current WBC featherweight titleholder Stephen Fulton (23-1, 8 KOs) will move up in weight to take on WBC super featherweight champion O’Shaquie Foster (23-3, 12 KOs).
Due to a recent development, the fight has lost some of its luster as Fulton failed to make the 130-pound weight limit. The bout will almost now laughably be contested for the WBC interim lightweight title in a head-scratching move that only boxing fans wouldn’t be surprised at due to the WBC’s involvement. Despite Foster’s title no longer being on the line, the lack of a proper title doesn’t deter the fight’s intrigue.
While Foster and Fulton are from different parts of the country, Foster from Texas and Fulton from Pennsylvania, both have proven to be resilient fighters who haven’t allowed losses to derail their careers.
In the summer of 2023, when Fulton fought Naoya Inoue for his junior featherweight titles, he was dominated before being stopped in the eighth round. For many fighters, a loss in that fashion would be devastating and challenging to recover from. However, Fulton, refusing to let the defeat define him, moved up in weight and once again became a world champion.
In a rematch of their 2021 super bantamweight classic, Fulton soundly defeated rival Brandon Figueroa for the WBC featherweight title. In facing Foster, the Philadelphia fighter is looking to make a statement and put himself back in contention for recognition as one of the best fighters below welterweight.
“I go after champions, no matter who,” stated Fulton. “It coulda been somebody else. I go after champions. That’s what I do. My road has prepared me well. We all go through things that push us to the next level. That’s led me to where I am now. It’s made me a better person, a better man, and a better fighter.”
Foster, for his part, also faced adversity at both the amateur and professional levels. He lost two fights early in his career but rebounded to put himself on the path of a WBC super featherweight title opportunity. Foster garnered wins over Alberto Mercado and Miguel Roman, leading to a match with former featherweight champion Rey Vargas for the vacant WBC super featherweight title in February 2023.
The Texas native scored a wide unanimous decision over the then-unbeaten Vargas and did so at the Alamodome in San Antonio. Since winning the title, Foster has had two highly competitive title defenses, including a come-from-behind knockout in the final round over Eduardo Hernandez. Two of the three judges had Foster down on their scorecards by more than five points each before the champion secured the victory. Then, against Abraham Nova, Foster again proved clutch, scoring a knockdown in the 12th round to win a split decision.
However, it would be against Robson Conceicao, where Foster’s habit of leaving fights in the balance for the judges backfired as he lost a decision and his WBC super featherweight title. In a rematch, Foster would win back his title in yet another close fight on the judges’ scorecards with a split decision. Heading into the fight with Fulton, Foster plans to use the lessons learned since becoming a world champion and to repeat his last performance in San Antonio.
“Last time we were here, we put on a great performance, and I plan on repeating it,” Foster explained. “I feel like his journey was sweet compared to mine. I came from the bottom, and I’ve been grinding ever since. “I feel like they think that they see something, like I’m a weak link for something. I’m gonna go out there and show them that they made the wrong choice.”
OSHAQUIE FOSTER VS. STEPHEN FULTON PREDICTION
Foster-Fulton should prove to be yet another closely contested fight for Foster. He has more experience fighting around the super featherweight and lightweight divisions, but he isn’t necessarily that much bigger than Fulton. It may come down to Foster pulling some late theatrics again, but this fight looks like it could end in a draw or split decision that could go to either man.
Foster by split decision.
OSHAQUIE FOSTER VS. STEPHEN FULTON BETTING ODDS
Per DraftKings SportsBook, O’Shaquie Foster at -110, and Stephen Fulton at -115 both have favorable odds, making this a true 50/50 fight.
O’Shaquie Foster: TKO/KO +550; Decision +155
Draw: +1400
Stephen Fulton: TKO/KO +550; Decision +150
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