Omar Figueroa vs. Ricky Burns: Fight Time, Date, Live Stream and TV Info

Omar Figueroa and Ricky Burns go head-to-head in a crucial fight for both men in the super lightweight division.

Local boy Figueroa (24-0-1, 18 KO) will be making his debut at 140 pounds in his home state, and Odds Shark indicates he has 1-10 odds of prevailing at the State Farm Arena in Hidalgo, Texas.

However, Burns (37-4-1, 11 KO) can be a tricky customer. He is a two-weight world champion who is desperate to get back on track after winning just once in his last four bouts.

The question is, has the Scotsman had his day or can he rekindle his own career by handing his opponent a first loss? It will be intriguing to find out.

When: Saturday, May 9; 4 p.m. CT/5 p.m. ET/9 p.m. BST

Where: State Farm Arena, Hidalgo, Texas

TV: CBS (US), Sky Sports (UK)

Live Stream: Sky Sports (regional restrictions apply)

Home Comforts

Figueroa was last seen in action against Daniel Estrada last August, retaining his WBC lightweight title in a thrilling bout that saw the champion defy a nasty cut over his left eye.

The wound—sustained in an accidental clash of heads—became infected, per Dan Rafael of ESPN, and his inability to defend the belt led to the WBC stripping him of it.

However, the 25-year-old had already stated before his final defence that he intended to move up in weight.

With less to worry about on the scales, he now has to instead deal with the pressure of performing in front of a home crowd. His brother, Brandon, is also fighting on the same card, making it a real family affair.

Figueroa, though, was adamant at the final press conference that he would be able to cope with the weight of expectation on Saturday:

"

I definitely feel more pressure but the good kind of pressure. I’ve thrived on pressure my whole life. I was a pitcher for a long time. I was a closer. So I’ve been in situations where it’s bases loaded and we’re down so many runs and I’ve got to keep the game close. This is what I live for.

"

He also admitted to not watching any footage of his next opponent. It seems he is extremely confident of victory, and beating Burns could open the door to some money-spinning fights in the division.

Burns' Night

Mark Runnacles/Getty Images

It is now or never for Burns, a fighter with an excellent pedigree but whose reputation has been tarnished of late.

A world champion at both super featherweight and lightweight, Rickster has taken the risk of going on the road to try to reignite a career that is in danger of reaching a dead end.

He boasts impressive victories over Michael Katsidis and Kevin Mitchell on his record, though his fourth-round stoppage of the latter in 2012 was his last real convincing performance.

A broken jaw, suffered early in the draw with Raymundo Beltran in 2013, did not help his progress, and he lost his WBO lightweight strap when Terence Crawford travelled to Glasgow, Scotland, to comfortably out-point him.

While the defeat to Crawford was hardly a shock, few expected him to come a cropper against Dejan Zlaticanin in his return. 

A move up was seen as the best route for the future, and he marked his debut at the new weight with a routine—yet far from impressive—points triumph over Alexandre Lepelley in October last year.

At 32, Burns knows a fifth professional loss at this stage of his career could be catastrophic. "I don’t want to contemplate defeat, I am not thinking about it—but there’s no doubt that I need to win this to get back on track and into more big fights," he told Sky Sports.

Prediction

Figueroa could have picked an easier opponent for his first outing in the division.

While Burns has been lacklustre of late, he will have a height (5′10″ vs. 5'7 ½") advantage. At his best, the Brit had the ability to dominate from distance, and he needs to get back to those methods that made him so successful.

If he is sluggish and allows Figueroa to get within range, however, it is tough to see how he causes an upset.

Expect the home favourite to come out on top, though it may be asking too much of him to become the first man to stop his rival.

As for the beaten Burns, expect him to contemplate retirement.