Shakur Stevenson admits he’s fighting stone -cold killer On July 12 in its main support against William Zepeda in Queens, New York. WBC lightweight champion Stevenson (23-0, 11 COs) stopped boasting and eventually admitted to facing a punching machine like no one else he fought in his eight-year professional career.
Shakur’s hand power issue
He knows that Zepeda is at a different level than he is offensive. So, he says he thinks he’s hitting harder and can knock him out. However, what may have a little Shakur when he fought at 126 and 130 did not transfer when he moved to 135.
In addition, his brittle hands make it even harder for him to generate power. That’s why we see Shakur throwing the body more because it is an area where fighters can throw hands with fragile hands to provide a pillow to enable them to cast their hands again.
Zepeda’s uninterrupted punch threat
“I fight against the animal in the section. This man is 33-0, 27 knockouts; He is a cold killer, a machine. He doesn’t stop hitting a man waiting for his moment, ‘says Shakur Stevenson for the ring Magazine Youtube Channel, talk about William Zepeda.
It is good that Shakur knows what he is facing on July 12. You will hate to see him pick up straight into a massacre without looking properly what he is going to handle, and fighting against a punching machine like Zepeda.
Stevenson is not more difficult than ‘Camaron’ Zepeda’s previous knockout victims, Mercito Gesta and Giovanni Cabrera. Indeed, I doubt Stevenson can take half as much punishment as Zepeda Gesta did in his sixth round in 2023.
Gesta tried to run from Zepeda, but it didn’t work. He cut off the ring on him and forced Mercito to knock it out and was overwhelmed with bumps. The body shots that Zepeda landed took out the wheels under the tough Filipine fighter and left him no choice but to stand up against the ropes for a last stance in sixth place.
The same is likely to happen to Shakur. He will run initially, but as soon as Zepeda ends up the body, his legs will fail him, and he will have to stand and fight against the Mexican volume puncher in the trenches. Unfortunately, Stevenson is not suitable for the kind of warfare and will crumble so quickly, perhaps before the sixth.
If Shakur cannot run, he will not last more than five rounds against Zepeda, because he is nowhere tough enough to take the lawn of bumps he takes from him, such as Gesta and Tevin Farmer. He is a wonderful runner -up, but Shakur is average and very vulnerable.
“I know what I’m going against. Many people try to compare this battle when I fought Oscar Valdez (in 2022 on Super Featherweight). Oscar Valdez pushes you, but he doesn’t throw a uninterrupted stops. Zepeda is a man who throws a lead. He’s going to try to break your will, ‘says Stevenson.
Stevenson’s low punch output
What Shakur has not added is that he has no chance to fit the high production of Zepeda, nor does he have the push of his bombing.
In Stevenson’s last battle against Josh Padley last February, he threw 419 shots, which was much for him, as his opponent had no power to make him careful. Shakur average 47.6 bumps per round. In contrast, Zepeda threw in his rematch with Tevin Farmer in March 974 and on average 81.17 bumps per round.
The only reason why Zepeda was not on average 100 strokes per round is that farmer held a lot and moved in an attempt to neutralize his offense. It only worked partially because he still threw a lot of blows and was near the farmer on two occasions when he turned his back on him, effectively surrender. The referee could have stopped the fight on both occasions, but chose not to.
Last updated on 07/05/2025
