Oberlton was a defensive lineman when playing football growing up in Philadelphia. When he found himself on the ground, his response was to fight whoever was responsible for why that happened, much to his coach's dismay.

“My dad got into an argument with the football coach and he was like, ‘Take them downstairs to the basement where they do boxing. They don’t fight here,'" Oberlton told The Ring.

“They took me down to the basement in the recreation center. I started at eight or nine years old, I was in and out of the gym, and then came back at 14, that's when I stayed dedicated and had my first amateur fight.”

13 years later, the undefeated light heavyweight isn’t far from finding himself in a fight with title implications.

Oberlton must impress when facing Joseph George in a 10-round light heavyweight bout Sunday in the co-main event preceding Claressa Shields vs. Franchon Crews-Dezurn II at Detroit's Little Caesars Arena on DAZN.

“This opportunity showcases who I am to the world again,” Oberlton said. ”For a while, I felt like my skills weren't being noticed due to the simplicity of not having a platform that other fighters have. Now I have the platforms and the cameras in front of me. Everything else is easy. I always said that all I needed was cameras in front of me, and then everything else would work itself out.”

Oberlton (14-0, 12 KOs) will be in his first fight under the Salita Promotions banner, which will co-promote him with his longtime promoter, Kings Promotions.

The 6-foot-3 southpaw is ranked No. 5 (WBA) and No. 14 (IBF). He last fought in December, knocking out journeyman Vaughn Alexander in the first round. Oberlton, 27, has won six straight fights inside the distance.

George (13-1, 8 KOs) has fought once since 2022, defeating Robert Burwell by third-round stoppage in March. His lone loss was a unanimous decision to Raiko Santana four years ago.

“This is deeper, and it's way bigger than Joseph George,” Oberlton said. “Nothing personal, but it is personal [because] you signed the contract. Anytime somebody signs that contract, it’s a form of disrespect, because you think man-to-man, you can do something with me. I'm going to prove that you cannot.”

The light heavyweight division is in flux. WBC champion David Benavidez, The Ring's No. 2-rated player at 175 pounds, is moving up to face unified WBA and WBO cruiserweight champion Gilberto Ramirez on May 2.

Ring, IBF, WBA and WBO champion Dmitry Bivol hasn’t fought since defeating Artur Beterbiev in their February 2025 rematch to become the division's undisputed beltholder. Beterbiev, who turned 41 last month, has also been out of the ring since his two-fight series with Bivol.

The trio all feature among The Ring's top-10 pound-for-pound list. Bivol sits at No. 5, Beterbiev a spot below and Benavidez two places further afield in eighth. Oberlton is content to stay patient given the division's murky future.

"It's a lot of great fights to be made," he said. “I see myself being in all of those great fights and winning them as well, and crowning myself as the king of the division. Right now, I'm on the come up, but I'm only a few steps away from becoming a world champion.”