Brandon Figueroa went to Liverpool as an outsider, put Nick Ball on the canvas twice in the final round, and came home with the WBA featherweight title. Now, in his first defense, he faces a genuine former world champion who has never been stopped across 47 professional fights. Tomoki Kameda lost on points to IBF champion Angelo Leo in May 2025, but he has never once hit the deck. The question on October 17 at The Chelsea at the Cosmopolitan is whether Figueroa can change that.
Date: Saturday, October 17, 2026 Venue: The Chelsea at the Cosmopolitan, Las Vegas, Nevada Promotion: Premier Boxing Champions (TGB Promotions) Division: Featherweight (126 lbs) Scheduled Rounds: 12 Title: WBA World Featherweight Championship Broadcast: DAZN and TNT Sports / truTV Broadcast start: 8:00 PM ET / 1:00 AM BST (Sunday) Estimated ringwalk: 10:00 PM ET / 3:00 AM BST
Figueroa–Kameda serves as the co-main event beneath Sebastian Fundora’s WBC super welterweight defense against Ermal Hadribeaj. Both bouts are on the same Premier Boxing Champions card — see our full Sebastian Fundora vs Ermal Hadribeaj preview for the main event breakdown.
Brandon “The Heartbreaker” Figueroa (27-2-1, 20 KOs) is 28 years old, born in Weslaco, Texas, and fights out of the Orthodox stance. He stands 5’8” with a 72-inch reach, which gives him a clear physical edge over most featherweights.
Figueroa is a two-division world champion. He previously held the WBA Regular and WBC super bantamweight titles before moving up, winning the WBC interim featherweight title with a decision over Mark Magsayo in 2023 and eventually claiming the full WBC strap in 2024. He lost that belt to Stephen Fulton on a unanimous decision before the breakout performance that defined his year: a trip to Liverpool as a heavy underdog to face WBA champion Nick Ball.
That night told you everything about what Figueroa is. He absorbed Ball’s best work for eleven rounds, got floored in the third, and then unloaded in the twelfth — two knockdowns, a TKO, and a world title — in front of a hostile crowd. His trainer Manny Robles has sharpened his footwork and ring generalship, but Figueroa’s engine — relentless body punching, pressure from all angles, and an ability to land late — remains the core weapon.
He debuted in 2015 and has 198 professional rounds logged. His two losses came against Stephen Fulton (twice), both on decisions. No one has ever stopped him.
Tomoki “El Mexicanito” Kameda (42-5-0, 23 KOs) is 33 years old, from Osaka, Japan, and has been fighting professionally since 2008. That is 47 fights across 349 rounds, including eight world title bouts. He, too, has never been stopped.
Kameda grew up training in Mexico — hence the nickname — and became the WBO bantamweight champion in 2013, making the Kameda brothers the first trio of siblings to hold world titles simultaneously (alongside Koki and Daiki). He lost the belt to Jamie McDonnell in 2015 and spent subsequent years campaigning at super bantamweight, including a 2019 challenge for Rey Vargas’s WBC title that he lost on a unanimous decision.
The more relevant form line starts in 2023. Kameda lost a split decision to Lerato Dlamini in October of that year, reversed it with a split decision win over the same opponent in August 2024, and then challenged Angelo Leo for the IBF featherweight title in Osaka in May 2025 — losing by majority decision in a fight he made competitive but could not win. He has been inactive since.
What Kameda offers: composure under pressure, technical straight-punch accuracy, a chin nobody has cracked across 47 fights, and the veteran experience to find rhythm against aggressive opponents. What he lacks: power to discourage Figueroa’s body attack, and the ring activity to peak for a 12-round championship fight after 17 months away.
| Brandon Figueroa | Tomoki Kameda | |
|---|---|---|
| Record | 27-2-1 | 42-5-0 |
| KOs | 20 (74%) | 23 (55%) |
| Age | 28 | 33 |
| Height | 5’8” (173 cm) | 5’7” (170 cm) |
| Reach | 72” (183 cm) | 66” (168 cm) |
| Stance | Orthodox | Orthodox |
| Pro Rounds | 198 | 349 |
| Debut | 2015 | 2008 |
Brandon Figueroa — Last 5 Fights
| Date | Opponent | Result | Method | Rounds |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Feb 2026 | Nick Ball | W | TKO | 12 |
| Jul 2025 | Joet Gonzalez | W | UD | 12 |
| Feb 2025 | Stephen Fulton | L | UD | 12 |
| May 2024 | Jessie Magdaleno | W | KO | 9 |
| Mar 2023 | Mark Magsayo | W | UD | 12 |
Tomoki Kameda — Last 5 Fights
| Date | Opponent | Result | Method | Rounds |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| May 2025 | Angelo Leo | L | MD | 12 |
| Aug 2024 | Lerato Dlamini | W | SD | 12 |
| Oct 2023 | Lerato Dlamini | L | SD | 12 |
| Jul 2019 | Rey Vargas | L | UD | 12 |
| Nov 2018 | Abigail Medina | W | UD | 12 |
Figueroa is 4-1 in his last five with the only loss a rematch against a champion. Kameda is 2-3 across the same stretch, with the wins coming by narrow split decisions and the losses to world champions. He went from a 2019 title challenge to a 2025 title challenge with a four-year gap in the middle, suggesting limited competitive activity at the level required to beat a current champion.
Figueroa’s blueprint is pressure and attrition. He closes distance, works the body from awkward angles, and increases his volume as rounds accumulate. The danger is that he can be caught coming in — Fulton repeatedly found him with straight right hands when Figueroa planted his feet after punching. Robles has addressed some of that, and the Liverpool performance showed improved head movement and patience in the middle rounds, but the tendency remains.
Kameda’s best chance is to replicate what Fulton did: move laterally, throw clean singles, and avoid getting pinned on the ropes or in the corners where Figueroa does his best body work. He has the technical foundation to execute that plan. The question is whether his legs and reflexes, at 33 and after 17 months out, can sustain it for 12 rounds.
Figueroa told PBC media he expects Kameda to try exactly that. “I feel like they’re gonna try to box me and emulate what Stephen Fulton Jr. did against me,” he said. He is walking into this defense with eyes wide open, working with Robles from a three-month training camp in Los Angeles.
The reach gap — 6 inches — is a structural problem for Kameda. He will need to close distance to land meaningful shots, and every time he does, he gives Figueroa the space he wants to work inside.
Brandon Figueroa needs to:
Tomoki Kameda needs to:
Current odds (KnockoutOdds best available, October 13, 2026): Figueroa -400 (1/3), Kameda +350 (7/2)
The market has this right. Kameda’s durability, experience, and composure mean this will be a professional performance — probably competitive through the middle rounds. But the combination of Figueroa’s physical advantages (reach, height, power percentage), his current form, and Kameda’s 17-month layoff and losing record in title fights makes the champion a heavy favourite.
Figueroa’s most likely path is gradually taking over through volume and body work, with Kameda surviving on his excellent chin but unable to accumulate the round count needed for a decision win. The Ball fight demonstrated that Figueroa can produce finishing sequences late when he has worn an opponent down.
Pick: Brandon Figueroa by TKO, rounds 9–12
United States: DAZN and TNT Sports / truTV. Broadcast begins 8:00 PM ET / 5:00 PM PT. United Kingdom: DAZN. Broadcast begins 1:00 AM BST (Sunday, October 18). Worldwide: DAZN in most territories.
Estimated ringwalk for the co-main event is approximately 10:00 PM ET / 3:00 AM BST.
On the same card: Sebastian Fundora defends his WBC super welterweight title against unbeaten challenger Ermal Hadribeaj in the main event, and Jose Armando Resendiz faces Koen Mazoudier on the undercard. The Boxing Data API covers all bouts on the card — browse our featherweight fight data or explore the full API to query fighter profiles and historical fight results.
When is Brandon Figueroa vs Tomoki Kameda? Saturday, October 17, 2026. The main card begins at 8:00 PM ET on DAZN and TNT Sports / truTV. Estimated ringwalk for the Figueroa–Kameda co-main event is 10:00 PM ET.
Where is Figueroa vs Kameda taking place? The Chelsea at the Cosmopolitan, Las Vegas, Nevada.
What title is on the line in Figueroa vs Kameda? The WBA World Featherweight Championship. Figueroa won the belt in February 2026 by TKO’ing Nick Ball in the 12th round in Liverpool. This is his first title defense.
Has Tomoki Kameda ever been a world champion? Yes. Kameda held the WBO bantamweight title from 2013 to 2014, making him a former two-division title challenger at featherweight. He is attempting to become a two-division world champion.
Who is the favourite to win Figueroa vs Kameda? Figueroa is a heavy favourite. As of October 13, 2026, KnockoutOdds lists best available moneyline at Figueroa -400 (1/3) and Kameda +350 (7/2). Odds vary by book and move closer to fight night.
What are Figueroa’s notable wins? Figueroa’s biggest wins include his title-winning TKO of Nick Ball (February 2026) in Liverpool, his KO win over Jessie Magdaleno, and his title campaign victories over Mark Magsayo and Joet Gonzalez. He previously held the WBC and WBA super bantamweight titles.
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