Ra’eese Aleem On Stephen Fulton: “Style Wise, He Doesn’t Want To Fight Me”

Stephen Fulton has built both his brand and his name by fighting the best fighters the super bantamweight division has to offer. With the WBC and WBO titles hanging on his proud shoulders, the Philadelphia native has openly stood up to all comers. However, even with Fulton defeating the likes of Daniel Roman, Brandon Figueroa and Angelo Leo, Ra’eese Aleem is convinced the unified champion is running scared away from him.

“Style-wise, he doesn’t want to fight me,” Aleem said during an interview with BoxingScene.com. “Who has he fought like me? No one. No one with my foot speed, my accuracy, my hand speed, my power. He’s fought a lot of good fighters, a lot of tough guys. But this is a fight that he is not quick to accept.”

Aleem, 32, has diligently worked his way up the hard way. In his last trip to the ring, the Michigan native easily outboxed fringe contender Mike Plania. In doing so, Aleem (20-0, 12 KOs) immediately challenged Fulton to accept his fight challenge. However, a smiling Fulton has shown little or no interest in placating his new rival.

According to the Philly guy, he’s got bigger fish to fry. With Murodjon Akhmadaliev holding the two remaining titles in the division, Fulton (21-0, 8 KOs) has put most, if not all, of his focus on becoming an undisputed champion.

Also of great importance to the 28-year-old Fulton is a potentially delicious matchup against Naoya Inoue. The pound-for-pound star and reigning unified bantamweight champion is expected to move up in weight should he secure his own undisputed status in the coming months.

Still, despite what appears to be a packed schedule, Aleem is eager to shut Fulton’s mouth once and for all. While the two have shared a bitter relationship, Aleem reveals that he actually reveres the current unified champion. But, in any case, although Aleem is quick to give Fulton flowers, he believes that he is more than capable of sticking the first loss to his well-established record.

“He is a consolidated world champion and I can’t take anything away from him. He has earned that right. But do I think I can beat him? 100%.”