Stevenson vs. Zepeda

Hamzah Sheeraz vs. Edgar Berlanga Sheeraz wins by TKO in 5th round.

Shakur Stevenson vs. William Zepeda Stevenson wins by UD.

Alberto Puello vs. Subriel Matias Matias wins by MD.

David Morrell vs. Imam Khataev Morrell wins by SD.

Reito Tsutsumi vs. Isiah Rodrigues Tsutsumi wins by TKO in the 2nd round.

The summer’s busiest fight week will close with fireworks as unbeaten WBC lightweight champion Shakur Stevenson defends against Mexico’s volume-punching menace William Zepeda on Saturday, 12 July, in New York City. DAZN will stream the event, billed as Ring Magazine 3 and tied to the launch of the publication’s new show Inside the Ring.

Unbeaten in 23 outings and already a three-division titlist, the 2016 Olympic silver medallist from Newark has climbed weight classes with near-surgical precision: featherweight belt in 2019, super-featherweight unification in 2022, then the vacant WBC lightweight crown in 2023. ESPN ranks the 27-year-old No. 2 at 135 lbs behind Gervonta Davis, and his February body-shot stoppage of late replacement Josh Padley, though short on thrills, showed he can close the show when the opening appears.

Zepeda, 29, brings an unblemished ledger and the interim WBC strap, forged by back-to-back victories over teak-tough Tevin Farmer. The southpaw slugger unleashed 974 punches in their March rematch, underlining the nonstop pressure that has made him must-watch TV and ESPN’s No. 4 lightweight. Saturday marks his sixth straight dance with a fellow left-hander, yet none possessed Stevenson’s radar-lock timing or defensive layers.

Watch Shakur's pre-fight interview: Watch

Co-main honours fall to a trans-Atlantic super-middle eliminator: Brooklyn knockout artist Edgar Berlanga meets Britain’s rangy technician Hamzah Sheeraz.

Hamzah Sheeraz could have taken the well-worn comeback trail after February’s bruising reality check against Carlos Adames, but the Ilford puncher has instead doubled down on ambition. Five months removed from a fortuitous draw that cost him the WBC middleweight crown, the 6ft 3in Brit is leaping eight pounds north to super-middleweight and diving straight into Saturday’s New York showdown with local hero Edgar Berlanga at Louis Armstrong Stadium.

A fresh corner accompanies the fresh weight. Sheeraz ended his decade-long California apprenticeship with Ricky Funez and will now be guided by ex-world champ Andy Lee - himself a Kronk-hardened tactician who knows the perils of rebounding at the elite level. Lee’s first mission is to restore the edge that deserted Sheeraz against Adames, when hesitation and lost rhythm betrayed a fighter who had iced fifteen straight opponents before that night.

Berlanga, 28, offers no gentle re-entry. The Brooklyn banger’s lone defeat came at the fists of Saul “Canelo” Álvarez, and 18 of his 23 wins have ended early. He is a natural 168-pounder, used to the weight and the roar of a partisan crowd - one he’s stoking by handing out tickets to “kids and cops” across the boroughs. At 6ft 1in he gives away only two inches in height, but none in confidence.

Watch On the Ground episode: Watch

An explosive undercard strengthens the bill. Puerto Rican puncher Subriel Matías challenges WBC 140-lb champion Alberto Puello in a bout unlikely to hear the final bell, and former secondary super-middleweight title-holder David Morrell tries to rebound from his loss to David Benavidez when he faces Russian knockout machine Imam Khataev.

Fight card:

▪️Hamzah Sheeraz vs. Edgar Berlanga, 12 rounds, middleweight
▪️Shakur Stevenson vs. William Zepeda, 12 rounds, for the WBC World lightweight title
▪️Alberto Puello vs. Subriel Matias, 12 rounds, for the WBC World super lightweight title
▪️David Morrell vs. Imam Khataev, 12 rounds, light heavyweight ▪️Reito Tsutsumi vs. Isiah Rodrigues, 6 rounds, super featherweight

Watch weigh-in live here: Watch