World Title Contender Darius Fulghum Targets Diego Pacheco And Other Top Super Middleweights – Breaking Boxing News
(Picture courtesy of Golden Boy Promotions & Cris Esqueda)
Houston-based, world-rated super middleweight Darius “DFG” Fulghum (15-1-1, 13 KOs) is targeting undefeated Diego Pacheco (26-0, 13 KOs) among others to position himself as a legitimate world title challenger for reigning World Boxing Association (WBA) World Super Middleweight Champion Jaime Munguia (46-2, 35 KOs).
For his last fight this past May 22nd, the 29-year-old Fulghum shifted training camp from Houston to the state-of-the-art Brickhouse Boxing Club in North Hollywood, California, for multiple issues that needed attention after his previous two disappointing performances (0-1-1).
In addition to getting elite sparring, Fulghum worked with one of boxing’s leading young trainers, Julian Chua, who also trains 2-division world champion Gilberto “Zurdo” Ramirez (and WBA No. 1 ranked super flyweight John “Scrappy” Ramirez, as well as unbeaten prospect Eric Priest (16-0-1, 8 KOs).
Fulghum’s longtime coach, Darnell Pierce, remains in Darius’ corner as head trainer and he worked many of Fulghum’s training sessions at Brickhouse. The results were so positive that the WBA No. 5-rated Fulghum is training again at Brickhouse Boxing Club in advance of his next fight. Fulghum stopped Cuban Yoanki Urrutia (17-2, 7 KOs) in the third round.
“My focus was the most important thing that I improved,” Fulghum explained. “Brickhouse put me in an environment where every day I’m surrounded by people who force me to level up. Physically I’ve always had the tools. The difference now is I’m mentally locked in, and that’s what people are going to see from here on out.”
Pacheco’s last fight was on July 18 in Carson, California, in which he knocked out Immanuwel Aleem (22-4-3, 14 KOs) in round eleven. Pacheco is ranked in all 4 major sanctioning bodies – WBO #3, WBC #4, WBA #6 and IBF #13 – as well as No. 6 by Ring Magazine.
“I have a lot of respect for Diego,” Fulghum said. “I was offered that fight but they decided to go with Aleem as their opponent instead. I was disappointed that I didn’t get that fight, because I believe I would’ve exposed a lot of things. Again, I think he is a talented fighter, but I know what I’ve done, and I don’t think he’s ever been in the ring with anybody like me. He’s fought a lot of good guys, but none with my style. If we fight, people are going to see the difference. This will be an entertaining fight with lots of action and my hometown of Houston will show up and show out for this one.
“Diego has a good jab and he’s well rounded. But his team has matched him smartly because most of the guys he’s fought play right into his strengths. I’m not one of those guys. I’d like to fight Diego next. It would be a great fight and position me for a world title shot. There are other ‘name’ super middleweights like (WBA No. 1) Bek (Bektemir Melikuziev) but he may be fighting Munguia next. I’d fight (WBA No. 3, Jose Armando) Resendiz and (WBA No. 4, Jermall) Charlo. ‘DFG’ is ready for the test!”
Fulghum was a decorated amateur boxer who was ranked No. 1 in the USA as a heavyweight, but as a professional he’s fought strictly as a super middleweight. He was the 2018 National Golden Gloves Tournament Champion, and he also won the 2020 U.S. Olympic Team Trials. He earned a nursing degree from Prairie View A & M University during COVID-19.
Fulghum is working with 3 Point Management (3 PM), which has a growing stable of gifted boxers former including WBA & WBO Cruiserweight and WBO Super Middleweight World Champion Gilberto “Zurdo” Ramirez (48-248-2, 30 KOs), WBA No. 1-rated world super flyweight title contender John “Scrappy” Ramirez (17-1, 9 KOs), former WBC Light Heavyweight World Champion Oleksandr “The Nail” Gvozdyk (21-3, 17 KOs), former WBA Inter-Continental Light Heavyweight Champion, Canadian Kareem “Supreme” Hackett (13-1, 7 KOs), Armenian featherweight Azat “Crazy A” Hovhannisyan (23-6, 17 KOs), and German junior welterweight Simon “Saucy” Vollmer (7-0, 3 KOs).
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