William Zepeda’s number has finally been called. The WBC has ordered “El Camaron,” the no. 1 lightweight contender with all four sanctioning bodies, to battle champion Shakur Stevenson.
The pair have until August 20th to come to terms.
Stevenson’s (22-0, 10 KO) decision win over Artem Harutyunyan two Saturdays ago was the last fight on his Top Rank contract, and he’s been testing the waters of free agency between Twitter tantrums. He appeared on Matchroom’s Jaron Ennis vs David Avanesyan broadcast two days ago and previously spoke to Oscar De La Hoya, who claimed Zepeda (31-0, 27 KO) would only take the fight if Stevenson signed with Golden Boy.
As mentioned, Zepeda’s ranking gives him a number of other options if Stevenson prices himself out or some other political shenanigans ensue, so I wouldn’t get my hopes too high.
If they do lock horns, the stylistic matchup should be fascinating. We’ve seen our share of elite technicians melt under the sort of volume Zepeda pumps out, but Zepeda has never faced someone with the legs and overall craft of Stevenson.