Omar Figueroa vs. Ricky Burns: Winner, Scorecard and Reaction

Omar "Panterita" Figueroa Jr. (25-0-1) made his Premier Boxing Champions debut Saturday in Hidalgo, Texas, which is just about 24 miles away from his native Weslaco, and the 25-year-old took a unanimous decision over Ricky "The Rickster" Burns (37-5-1).

Steve Kim of Undisputed Champion Network has the official scores:

The fight was highly competitive from beginning to end, though not everyone was in agreement about the outcome. Ryan Bivins of Sweet Boxing weighed in:

"

Omar Figueroa UD12 Ricky Burns (117-109, 116-110, 116-110) #boxing #PBConCBS Fight could have gone either way despite cards.

— Ryan Bivins (@sweetboxing) May 9, 2015"

One look at the CompuBox numbers shows the wide margin on the cards was a bit peculiar:

Burns did a good job of landing his jab and following it up with his right hand for most of the fight. Subsequently, Figueroa countered by plowing ahead to close the distance to induce the type of phone-booth brawl we're used to seeing whenever he fights. 

Figueroa succeeded in dictating the identity of the fight, but Burns gave as good as he got—if not better—in many of the rounds.

When inside, Figueroa did excellent work to the body and with uppercuts. The blood-and-guts action wasn't one-sided. Burns made sure he was heard from as well when the fight was in close quarters.

Unfortunately, he had to deal with more than just Figueroa when the fight took place on the inside. Referee Laurence Cole made himself a central figure in the bout, as he repeatedly moved Burns' hand from a dominant position in the clinch.

It's hard to recall an instance where a referee did that as demonstratively and frequently as Cole did on Saturday. He not only physically reprimanded Burns, but he also took two points from the fighter.

The second penalty was the most egregious considering Burns had just been hurt by a solid left hook to the body from Figueroa. Actress and boxing enthusiast Rosie Perez and middleweight Sergio Mora reacted to the decision:

ESPN.com's Dan Rafael might have had the tweet of the day on Cole:

I scored the fight 114-112 for Burns, but calling Figueroa the winner wasn't preposterous considering the number of close rounds. That said, the margins of victory—even with two point deductions—were absurd. Midway through the bout, Mick Bower of Sherdog saw the writing on the wall:

Considering Burns had to travel thousands of miles from Scotland into his opponent's backyard and deal with a young and hungry fighter who missed weight, per Rafael, and a referee who didn't have a good night, you'd have to say he made a solid account of himself.

As much as Cole and the judges didn't help Burns, the Rickster may have suffered the most by his lack of punching power. He came in with just 11 knockouts, and he accumulated that slim total when he fought at 130 and 135 pounds.

He just doesn't have the might necessary to hurt his opponents at 140 pounds. He also lacks the ability to fight moving backward, which would be a handy tool given his dearth of power. His heart is as big as Texas, but unfortunately his power is like Rhode Island.

Figueroa fights an exciting style, but he's difficult to miss and often throws his punches when he's off balance. He looks to muck up the action and turn every fight into a brawl. A more skilled and/or strong 140-pounder would likely give him trouble.

Seeing him in the ring with Adrien Broner or Amir Khan would present an interesting stylistic matchup.

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