Sergey Lipinets Replaces Adrien Broner Vs. Omar Figueroa Jr., Promises To Put On Show

Omar Figueroa Jr. will still have a fight on Saturday.

Figueroa was supposed to fight former four-division champion Adrien Broner, but he dropped out of the contest early Monday morning, citing mental health. Sergey Lipinets will step in just five days before the fight on August 20 in Hollywood, Florida.

“We’ve actually been in camp for almost three months getting ready for whoever they put in front of me,” said Lipinets.

“We’ve been training with no particular opponent in mind. There have been a few different guys that have said they wanted to fight me. So, we’ve been sparring with and preparing for all types of styles.

“And now we get this great news that I get to fight Figueroa this Saturday. I can’t wait to show everyone that I’m still a force to be reckoned with at 140 pounds.”

Lipinets (16-2-1, 12 KOs) was already scheduled for the card before being elevated as a replacement.

The Kazakhstan-born fighter has experience with fighting champions, previously meeting Lamont Peterson and Mikey Garcia.

In 2017, he won the IBF super lightweight title over Akhiro Kondo, but lost it to Garcia by unanimous decision in 2018.
He most recently lost to Jaron Ennis in a welterweight title match in April 2021.

Now on Saturday, he meets Figueroa (28-2-1, 19 KOs) in a 12-round WBC super lightweight title eliminator match.

“This is going to be a great fight against Lipinets and I hope he’s ready for what I’m bringing,” Figueroa said.

“I’ve made changes in my life and I’m excited to see the kind of fighter that I am now.”