Stephen Fulton has frequently been considered one of the world's best pound-for-pound fighters and it's easy to see why.
When claiming the WBO and then WBC world titles at super bantamweight, Fulton's dominant, but defensive style was one which many opponents struggled with and would require the world's best to unlock.
This turned out to be the case when Fulton travelled to Japan and defended his two world titles against Naoya Inoue who proved too much for the American. However, this loss should not tarnish what the Philadelphia fighter has already achieved.
DAZN takes a look at the career of Fulton below.
What is Stephen Fulton's record?
Stephen Fulton boasts a 21-1 professional record with eight of those wins coming by way of knockout.
Championships
Stephen Fulton won the IBO super bantamweight belt in 2019.
He then won two of the major belts in 2021. He won the WBO strap that January, and followed it up with the WBC championship in November the same year.
His reign as WBC and WBO world super bantamweight champion came to an end however on July 25, 2023 when he was stopped by Naoya Inoue in Japan.
Biggest wins
Fulton beats Leo to claim WBO belt; January 23, 2021
Stephen Fulton was expected to fight WBO champion Emanuel Navarette, but during the summer of 2020, the titlist vacated the belt.
Fulton was then given the task of fighting Angelo Leo for the vacant title on August 1 that year, but the fight was postponed due to postive Covid tests for Fulton and members of his camp, and the fight eventually went ahead on January 23, 2021.
Fulton dominated most rounds of the event and won the fight by unanimous decision, with scores of 118–110, 119–109 and 119–109.
Fulton becomes unified champion after beating Figueroa; November 27, 2021
Fulton was pencilled in to fight WBC super bantamweight champion Brandon Figueroa on September 18, 2021, but 10 days before the clash, Figueroa suffered a Covid-19 positive result, and the fight was then put back to November 27, 2021.
Fulton was the clear favourite, but won by a relatively tight 114-114 and two 116-112 score, landing fewer - but more accurate punches - than his rival.