Darius Fulghum vs. Bektemir Melikuziev: A Battle of Power, Skill, and Legacy

Darius Fulghum 14-0-12 KOS is a super middleweight with an unblemished record from Houston, Texas.

His amateur career is decorated with various wins, which laid a solid foundation for his professional journey. In 2018, he got the National Golden Gloves title as he was ranked number 1 by the USA as a heavyweight. Aside from boxing, Darius is a licensed nurse in Texas, holding his degree from Prairie View A&M University. His first professional bout was in 2021, and he's set to face Bektemir Melikuziev, who's ahead of him in the professional journey by 2 years and 6 months. Despite the professional advantage that Bektemir 15-1-0-10 KOS has, Darius has recorded more physical power by the knockouts, and he also has a height advantage of 3 inches above his opponent.

Bektemir, a southpaw, and Darius, an orthodox, will have the 12-round contest on May 30, 2025, at Virgin Hotels, Las Vegas, United States. In terms of rankings, it is evident that Bektemir Melikuziev has more prize. He is at the 3rd rank by WBA, 12th by WBC and 10th by WBO, while Darius is ranked 4th by WBA.

Bektemir from Uzbek had various wins attributed to his amateur career. In the 2016 Summer Olympics, he won a silver medal as a middleweight. On June 13th 2019, Melikuziev made his professional debut after a win against Martin Fide Rios from Argentina in the opening round. After this, on 30th August same year, Bektemir had a successful bout again against Ricardo Adrian Luna Flores. The win was out of two knockdowns with consecutive blows in the first round.

In the last three contests, Bektemir has won all the matches, the latest one being against David Stevens on November 2, 2024. It was a win by split decision in the 12th round at Virgin Hotels Las Vegas, United States. On his second last, he defeated Pierre Hubert by technical knockout in the 8th round on 20th April 2024 at Barclays Centre, New York. Finally, before that, he had fought Alantez Fox by technical knockout in the 4th round on October 7, 2023, at the Cosmopolitan of Las Vegas, Chelsea Ballroom Las Vegas.