How the gift of time aided Angelo Leo in preparing for Stephen Fulton

After a positive COVID test kept Stephen Fulton out of a title fight against Angelo Leo, they finally meet on Jan. 23 live on Showtime. 

Angelo Leo defends his WBO junior featherweight title for the first time ironically against the foe he was supposed to fight for the then-vacant title back in August.

Leo (20-0, 9 KOs) was days away from fighting Stephen Fulton when Fulton tested positive for COVID-19. Fulton was off the card, and Tramaine Williams stepped in. Williams (19-1, 6 KOs) boasted an unblemished record and offered Leo a new style to prepare for on short notice.

The southpaw Wiliams was a worthy opponent, but Leo defeated him by unanimous decision on Aug. 1 to win his first world title. Fulton missed out on a golden opportunity due to a cruel twist of fate, but he gets another chance at Leo and the title on Saturday, Jan. 23.

Fulton (18-0, 8 KOs) was the betting favorite back in August, and he holds a slight edge over Leo the second time around, but this contest has a true 50-50 feel. In many ways, Leo feels like Williams acted as a strong warmup to Fulton. He sees numerous similarities between the two.

“I think they’re pretty similar in caliber,” Leo told FanSided. “Williams had one more fight than Fulton. Their styles are really similar. Their backgrounds are very similar. The only thing about Williams is Williams was a southpaw. That was the only big difference there. Other than that, their styles are pretty similar.”

Angelo Leo and Stephen Fulton finally meet in a junior featherweight title bout five months after their original scheduled meeting

Since becoming champion, Leo has spent a great deal of time studying Fulton further. With five months more to plan for Fulton, Leo feels like time is on his side and will benefit him on fight night.

“Those added months gave me more time to work on the gameplan,” said Leo. “Everything that I’ve worked on has become more natural. More solidified. Everything is coming a lot more smooth. The gameplan is going to be great. It’s going to be a good fight.”

Other than continuing to train, Leo has utilized film study of Fulton’s previous fights. Leo’s entire team has closely analyzed Fulton on film, and they’ve been judicious in identifying  Fulton’s tendencies and imperfections.

“I got the gist of him,” said Leo. “I’ve got his habits and everything he likes to do and what he doesn’t like to do. We just exploit those and try to figure out counters for everything.”

Leading up to their Showtime main event, Leo and Fulton have been respectful to one another. During a recent media call, Leo and Fulton both projected confidence and mutual respect. Fulton wasn’t as courteous before their originally scheduled August bout, and Leo hasn’t forgotten that.

“It hasn’t been so quiet,” recalled Leo. “Recently, he hasn’t been talking, but when the first fight back in August, he was talking some smack. This last press conference, he was pretty quiet and pretty respectful. He has said that it’s going to be his easiest payday. We’ll just have to see on Jan. 23. I’m going to prove him wrong.”

Leo wants to keep his world champion status, but a skilled Fulton will test him.

Watch Angelo Leo vs. Stephen Fulton on Saturday, Jan. 23, exclusively on Showtime. Coverage begins at 9 p.m. ET.