Hamzah Sheeraz (22-0-1, 18 KOs) scored a picture-perfect fifth-round knockout of Edgar Berlanga (23-2, 18 KOs) in a WBC super middleweight title eliminator in the main event at the Louis Armstrong Stadium in Queens, New York.
Sheeraz dropped Berlanga twice in round four with combinations. Edgar looked badly hurt and barely made it out of the round.
At the start of the fifth, Hamzah finished off Berlanga with a right-left combination that put him down for the third time in the fight. The referee, David Fields, then called a halt to the fight 17 seconds into round five.
Results
Shakur Stevenson (24-0, 11 KOs) held onto his WBC lightweight title with a controversial 12-round unanimous decision over William Zepeda (33-1, 27 KOs). The scores were 118-110, 118-110, and 119-109. Boxing News 24 scored it for Zepeda 12-0.
“I took more punishment than usual. I have dog in me. I fought,” said Shakur after the fight. “That was one of the toughest fighters at 135 lbs. I had to go in my bag. I had not to sit on the ropes for too long. I had to stay off the ropes, dig my punches. Whoever,” said Shakur about who he wants next. “Jerry came in and did what I had to do.”
Shakur Stevenson vs. William Zepeda round by round
Round 1
Surprisingly, Shakur stood in front of Zepeda, trading shots. Hard shots came from Zepeda to the head and body of Stevenson, which seemed to bother him.
Round 2
Zepeda is throwing more in this round, getting his offense cranked up. Shakur is standing in front of him, smiling, trying to match his work, but can’t do it.
Round 3
Shakur was trapped against the ropes and almost dropped by a hard right hand from Zepeda. Stevenson looks hurt. Big round for Zepeda.
Round 4
Another one-sided round with Zepeda working Shakur over against the ropes with volume punching.
Round 5
Zepeda’s pressure forces Shakur to move more in this round, but it’s no use. Zepeda stays on him, landing shot after shot. Stevenson connected with some nice punches, but not enough.
Round 6
A better round for Stevenson as he moves to the center of the ring, picking off Zepeda with shots. However, Zepeda finished strong. It’s a toss-up round.
Round 7
Zepeda did the better work. He was constantly throwing and coming forward this round. Shakur landed some nice shots, but not enough.
Round 8
Zepeda outworked Shakur by a wide margin in this round. He landed a lot of shots after catching Stevenson against the ropes.
Round 9
The situation is starting to look dire for Shakur, as he was outworked again by Zepeda in this round. Although Stevenson landed some nice punches, the volume of Zepeda was too much for him.
Round 10
Stevenson is using more movement in this round, showing signs of fatigue from the pressure from Zepeda. Thus far, a complete shutout for Zepeda.
Round 11
The crowd is booing in this round due to Shakur running and holding. He doesn’t like the pressure from Zepeda. So, he reverts to form, turning into Jerry.
Round 12
Zepeda is pressuring throughout the round. Shakur is running and holding. In the last 10 seconds, Shakur runs from Zepeda. What a poor way to end the fight. I have it as a shutout for Zepeda. Expect a robbery.
Subriel Matias (23-2, 22 KOs) pulled off a huge upset, defeating previously unbeaten WBC light welterweight champion Alberto Puello (24-1, 10 KOs), winning a 12-round majority decision. Puello hurt his chances of winning by constantly clinching, choosing to stall out many of the rounds.
The scores
114-114
115-113 – Matias
115-113 – Matias
David Morrell (12-1, 9 KOs) defeated previously unbeaten Imam Khataev (10-1, 9 KOs) by a 10-round split decision in an action-packed light heavyweight contest. The scores were 95-94 for Khataev, 96-93, and 95-94 for Morrell. In the fifth round, Khataev dropped a careless Morrell with a looping right hand to the head. Morrell came back strong to hurt Khataev in the ninth and tenth rounds.
David Morrell vs. Imam Khataev – round by round
Round 1
Morrell landing jabs, moving around, looking confident. Khataev landed big power shots to the body and head. Morrell shelled up several times in the round and took some hard punches from Khataev.
Round 2
Early on, Khataev got the better of the action, landing hard shots when Morrell shelled up. In the final 30 seconds of the round, Morrell lit Khataev up. The Russian cut over his right eye.
Round 3
Big round for Khataev, as he landed hard punches to Morrell’s head, forcing him to move around. In the last 20 seconds, Morrell came on strong, connecting repeatedly.
Round 4
Early on it was all Morrell, boxing and nailing the tired-looking Khataev. Late in the round, Khataev came on strong.
Round 5
Khataev drops Morrell with a huge right hand in the final seconds of the round. Morrell is badly hurt after he gets back up. Saved by the bell.
Round 6
Morrell came back well, landing hard shots against a tiring Khataev. In the last part of the round, Morrell connected with body shots and had Khataev feeling them.
Round 7
A better round for the Cuban Morrell. He boxed well, landing hard jabs and catching Khataev on the inside with combinations. He made the mistake of shelling up in the final seconds, letting Khataev land.
Round 8
A close round. Both fighters are landing hard punches. Morrell seemed to get the better of the action, connecting with jabs and left hands. However, he shelled up in the final seconds, allowing Khataev to get off.
Round 9
Morrell hurts Khataev with a big hand and then tees off with huge shots. Khataev looked hurt in the last minute.
Round 10
Morrell hurts Khataev late in the right with an uppercut, nailing him at will in the last part of the round. Khataev is looking shaky in the final seconds.
Reito Tsutsumi (2-1 KOs) destroyed late replacement opponent Michael Ruiz (2-8-1) by a second-round technical knockout in featherweight action. The 22-year-old Tsutsumi dropped Ruiz three times in the fight. In the first round, Tsutsumi tore into Ruiz, knocking him down with a right to the body.
Moments later, Tsutsumi dropped Ruiz with a short left hook to the body in the final seconds of the round. At the start of round two, Tsutsumi finished Ruiz off, flattening him with a straight left to the head. Referee Eric Dalli then halted the fight. The time was 28 seconds of round two.
Tsutsumi needs to be fighting better opposition. With his amateur background, there’s no reason for him to be fighting this level of weak opposition. The guy he was in there with tonight wasn’t even throwing back. He was just trying to survive by holding and moving.
Punch stats
– Reito Tsutsumi: 39 of 67 punches thrown for 58%
– Michael Ruiz: 2 of 23 for 9%
Last Updated on 07/12/2025
2025-07-13 03:15:12
