Shakur Stevenson smiles during a press conference before his July 6 fight in Newark, New Jersey. Photo by Mikey Williams/Top Position
William Zepeda is back on Shakur Stevenson’s stuff.
The Ring has confirmed that the WBC has ordered both sides to enter mandatory title talks. Stevenson (22-0, 10 knockouts) currently holds the WBC 135-pound belt. Mexico’s Zepeda (31-0, 27 KOs) is ranked No. 1 in all four sanctioning bodies.
An agreement must be reached within the next 30 days to avoid a fund bid hearing. As is the practice of the WBC, the application date—August 20—was already kept in case time was needed.
Stevenson, of The Ring’s No. 4-rated lightweight, managed by manager James Prince and in-house promoter Antonio Leonard. He was previously promoted by Top Rank; their deal expired after his July 6 points win over Artem Haruyunyan (12-2, 7 KOs) in Newark, New Jersey. Zepeda, ranked No. 3 at 135, is with Golden Boy Promotions and manager Jaime Picos.
Oscar De La Hoya, Zepeda’s Hall of Fame promoter, showed off the fighter’s average level before and after his latest win. Zepeda also fought on July 6 and won a third round over Giovanni Cabrera in Las Vegas.
Much is made of his desire to face any comers. However, the clear target is WBO-ranked Denys Berinchyk (19-0, 9 KOs), who is number 5 at 135. De La Hoya’s idea was for Zepeda to face the undefeated Ukrainian later this year. From there, the next target will be a matchup against Stevenson.
Those plans are apparently on hold until an agreement is reached to the satisfaction of all parties. Stevenson and Zepeda cannot commit to any other fight once the clock starts ticking. Zepeda will risk being placed on the WBC list if his team goes down to advance.
Stevenson became a three-division champion with a vacant title win over Edwin De Los Santos (16-2, 14 KOs) last Nov. 11 in Las Vegas. The 2016 Olympic silver medalist previously won the belts at 126 and 135.
This match was previously reviewed by the WBC, only as a title decider. Golden Boy immediately rejects the idea of fighting, given the modest stakes. Stevenson went on to face the undefeated Shuichiro Yoshino (16-0, at the time), who he stopped in the 6th round last April 8.
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