WBC lightweight titleholder Shakur Stevenson (24-0, 11 KOs) maintained his championship status with a 10-round unanimous decision over his challenger, William Zepeda (33-1, 27 KOs). The match, held at Louis Armstrong Stadium in Queens, New York, has garnered criticism from observers due to the peculiar scorecards submitted by the judging panel.
The judges recorded the contest as a clear-cut victory for Shakur. In reality, the fight was closely contested, with Zepeda displaying greater activity against a largely stationary Stevenson throughout the rounds. The judges’ tallies of 118-110, 118-110, and 119-109 seemed incongruent with the events that transpired during the bout. It was as though they were scoring a different encounter entirely.
It seems the judges disregarded the substantial number of body blows landed by Zepeda, opting instead to prioritize and score only the head strikes with which Shakur connected. When viewed from this perspective, the judges’ scores take on a degree of comprehensibility, even if misguided. They are expected to consider body shots when evaluating a fight; a principle seemingly overlooked during this event.
Stevenson spent a considerable portion of the fight positioned against the ropes, evading Zepeda’s head-directed punches by leaning back. However, he failed to adequately defend against the body shots, which landed cleanly on his midsection and chest. With Shakur’s primary focus on avoiding blows to the head, he left his body exposed, and Zepeda capitalized on this vulnerability, landing shots with impunity.
During the third round, Zepeda staggered Shakur with a right hand to the head, nearly causing him to fall. Shakur’s composure visibly faltered at that point, and he absorbed a barrage of subsequent shots from Zepeda. Post-fight, Stevenson refuted claims of being hurt, attributing his stumble to a slip. However, his bleeding lips suggested otherwise.
In the latter half of the fight, Zepeda continued to outperform Shakur, landing punches and navigating through the occasional shot from his opponent. In the 11th and 12th rounds, Stevenson resorted to circling and moving around the ring, attempting to avoid further punishment. Having absorbed significant damage, he appeared unwilling to continue engaging in close-quarters combat.
In conclusion, Shakur’s performance was subpar, and I personally believed he lost the fight.
