Мексикийн боксчин Уильям Зепеда өмнөх тулаанд өөрийг нь оноогоор илүүрхсэн Шакур Стивенсонтой дахин тулалдах хүсэлтэй байгаагаа илэрхийлжээ.
Өнгөрсөн долдугаар сард Нью-Йорк хотын Луис Армстронг цэнгэлдэх хүрээлэнд болсон WBC-ийн хөнгөн жингийн аваргын төлөөх тулаанд Шакур Стивенсон (25-0, 11 KO) шүүгчдийн санал нэгтэй шийдвэрээр (118-110, 118-110, 119-109) Уильям Зепедаг буулган авсан юм. Стивенсон тус ялалтын дараа WBO-ийн супер хөнгөн жингийн аварга болсон бол Зепеда Ламонт Роач Жуниорыг ялж, Стивенсоны эзэмшиж байсан WBC-ийн бүсийг эзэмших болжээ.
Зепеда өгсөн ярилцлагадаа Стивенсоны цохилтын хүч төдийлөн их биш ч тулааны явцыг унших чадвар, цохилтын нарийвчлал маш өндөр болохыг онцолсон байна. Тэрээр өөрийн хамгаалалтын цоорхойг Стивенсон хурдан олж, баруун гараараа болон дэгээ цохилтоор давуу байдал үүсгэж байсныг хүлээн зөвшөөрчээ.
Стивенсоны хувьд “Zuffa Boxing”-тэй гэрээ байгуулсны дараах дараагийн тулаанаа албан ёсоор зарлаагүй байна. Түүнийг Гэри Антуан Расселлтэй тулалдах магадлалтай гэж үзэж байгаа ч Зепедатай хийсэн анхны тулаан нь Стивенсоны хувьд карьерынх нь хамгийн хүнд сорилт байсныг тамирчин өөрөө хүлээн зөвшөөрсөн билээ.
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Shakur Stevenson got the better of William Zepeda when he defended his WBC lightweight title last year in New York.
Whilst on the hunt for a second shot at the pound-for-pound star, Zepeda has assessed the power of the Newark southpaw.
Stevenson showed a more attacking side to himself when he comfortably outpointed the usually high-output Mexican lefty, claiming a unanimous decision (118-110, 118-110, 119-109) at the Louis Armstrong Stadium last July.
Since then, Stevenson – who has 11 knockouts from 25 wins – has moved up and captured the WBO super-lightweight crown, whilst Zepeda has bounced back from his first career defeat and got his hands on Stevenson’s old WBC lightweight title by defeating Lamont Roach Jr for the vacant belt.
Now, ‘Camaron’ is hoping to secure a rematch with Stevenson, and though he did not credit the American with punch power following their first fight, he appreciated the accuracy of the 29-year-old, in a recent interview with Luis Parra.
“What Shakur has is that he’s very accurate. I’ve been watching my fights back and he was able to read a lot of the patterns I had. Whenever I threw, I’d move back and he knew what openings I was leaving.
“He realised that when he threw the right hand and the hook, that’s when my guard would open up, and that’s where he’d catch me and make me move backwards. With those combinations, he’d win the round.
“They weren’t hard punches, but he was attacking the openings I had.”
Zepeda has also been linked to a lightweight world title unification against 22-year-old WBO champion Abdullah Mason, but Mason may instead reschedule a showdown against Wales’ Joe Cordina on the Tyson Fury vs. Anthony Joshua undercard in Cardiff, after their planned July clash was cancelled.
As for Stevenson, he is yet to announce his next fight after a high profile signing with Zuffa Boxing. After reports he would face Manny Pacquiao were dismissed, a unification against Gary Antuane Russell seems the most likely option.
Whether or not a rematch with Zepeda materializes in the future remains to be seen, though Stevenson has credited the Mexican as being his toughest opponent.
