Meet Darius Fulghum, a Rising Star in the Eyes of Bernard Hopkins

Meet Darius Fulghum, a Rising Star in the Eyes of Bernard Hopkins

Golden Boy Promotions is at the Cosmopolitan in Las Vegas tomorrow (Saturday, Oct. 7) with a boxing card topped by a 10-round contest between cruiserweight newbies Gilberto “Zurdo” Ramirez (44-1, 30 KOs) and Joe Smith Jr (28-4, 22 KOs), both former title-holders in lower weight classes. The main portion of the card will be live-streamed on DAZN (8 pm ET/5 pm PT).

In the TV opener, light heavyweight Darius Fulghum opposes Alan Campa in an 8-rounder. Fulghum, hailed by Golden Boy exec Bernard Hopkins as a future champion, has won all seven of his pro fights inside the distance. Campa, a 13-year veteran, is 18-8 (12).

Fulghum, 27, is an engaging young man. If he were a nurse, one might be inclined to say that he has a good bedside manner.

Actually, he is a nurse, not a practicing nurse at the moment as boxing is all-consuming, but one who has met the qualifications. He holds a Bachelor of Science degree from Prairie View A & M College of Nursing, a program anchored at Houston’s Methodist Hospital.

Fulghum grew up in Killeen, Texas, where his father was stationed at the mammoth Fort Hood (recently re-named Fort Cavazos) military base. He took up boxing at age 19, an advanced age for someone who would go on to represent the U.S. in international tournaments.

A 2018 National Golden Gloves champion, he earned a ticket to the Olympic Trials where he wasn’t expected to go far. Competing in the 201-pound division, he was small for the weight class and the eighth seed in an 8-man tournament.

He won the tourney, but fate intervened in the form of a global pandemic and a trip to Tokyo wasn’t in his future. When the Americas tournament in Buenos Aires was cancelled because of Covid, a point system was introduced to determine the U.S. team and Fulghum hadn’t been in the pipeline long enough to make the cut. (The U.S. men’s team in Tokyo consisted of only five boxers. The 201-pound division wasn’t represented.)

Pursuing a college degree while honing his boxing skills was a juggling act. “It was the hardest thing I ever had to do,” says Fulghum who recalls doing his roadwork at 5 am and then taking a nap in his car before his first class of the day. It forced him to miss several tournaments and ultimately stymied his goal of competing for an Olympic medal.

After finishing college, Fulghum had a choice to make. Many of those in his graduation class segued right in to a good-paying job as a travel nurse, working short gigs at hospitals around the country. The pandemic exacerbated a national shortage of nurses and nurses willing to travel were suddenly in higher demand and paid accordingly. But Fulghum chose to put nursing on the backburner – perhaps forever – and pursue boxing full-time.

Although he competed at 201 pounds as an amateur, he believes that his future as a pro is at super middleweight. What’s odd about him trimming down is that when asked if he has any hobbies, Darius volunteered that he loves to eat  — “all kinds of food,” he says. He enjoys watching “Diners, Drive-Ins, and Dives” on the Food Network and If he could change places with anyone right now, it would be the show’s host, Guy Fieri. “When I am finally done with boxing, that would be my perfect job,” he says.

Fulgham was recruited coming out of the amateur ranks by Probellum, the company founded by former Golden Boy CEO Richard Schaefer. He was cut adrift after three fights when Probellum folded in the wake of the MTK Global scandal, but Golden Boy was quick to pick up the slack. Their carrot was the promise that he would be fast-tracked. Although Fulghum has yet to fight his first 10-round fight, he expects to be competing for a world title by the end of 2025. Ask Bernard Hopkins, the legendary B-Hop, and he would tell you that this is hardly wishful thinking.

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