Seeger, Figueroa Battle for Legitimacy.
Two determined men will lock horns tonight on Telefutura’s Solo Boxeo broadcast to North and Central America as both Al Seeger and Cesar Figueroa have struggled when facing an opponent of consequence but will have the opportunity to rise above in Savannah, Georgia. On paper it appears that Seeger, 24-1 (18), has the advantage as the twenty-five-year-old certainly has the better record and will be performing in front of an adoring hometown crowd. But Figueroa, with a 28-5-2 (20) mark and a former NABF titlist, has faced the tougher opposition and is a natural featherweight while Seeger has been plying his trade four pounds south at super bantamweight. In the balance is the IBA 122-pound title but far more important than that obscure accessory is the passport to a viable future with which only the winner will walk away.
Al Seeger comes into this pairing riding the crest of a five fight win streak and all of those bouts have taken place during the last twelve months, following the Georgian’s titanic struggle with the difficult journeyman Phillip Payne. Payne is a spoiler and far better than the mediocre 13-11-1 (5) mark he carried into the Seeger fight suggests but legitimate, good fighters tend to get past the St. Louis scrapper.
To be fair, Seeger had canvassed Payne in the first round of their contest in May of last year and by the latter stages of the match had built a commanding lead by working effectively behind the jab. But the Savannah man had not been able to put away the iron jawed journeyman and by the ninth frame Seeger could no longer withstand Payne’s aggression. “The Quiet Storm” saw his lead on the scorecards evaporate when he was unable to carry on for the tenth round, giving Payne the victory.
Seeger will find another willful opponent in the opposite corner tonight in the form of Cesar Figueroa. The Mexico City native is a veteran of hard fights with quality foes such as Humberto Soto, Daniel Ponce De Leon, Marcos Licona and most recently, Robert Guerrero. Unfortunately for Figueroa, he came up short in each one of those contests and may be showing signs of slipping, as his fourth round thrashing at the hands of prospect Guerrero seems to indicate.
When the bell rings in Savannah, Georgia, Seeger – Figueroa should be a good, competitive affair as both combatants will be not only fighting for the victory but the continued viability of their careers as well.
Contact Curtis McCormick at thomaspointrd@aol.com