Shakur Stevenson Vs. William Zepeda: Odds, Records, Prediction
Shakur Stevenson hasn't ever faced an overwhelming power puncher with as much skill as William Zepeda. But that hasn't stopped the oddsmakers from making Stevenson a large betting favorite to retain his lightweight title vs. Zepeda on Saturday night. Here's everything you need to know about Shakur Stevenson vs. William Zepeda, including the odds, their records and a prediction on who will win.
There's a scent of recent disappointment coming off both fighters heading into their bout. Stevenson was supposed to face Floyd Schofield earlier this year in Saudi Arabia, but Schofield withdrew from the fight at the last minute, leaving Stevenson to fight the relatively unknown Josh Padley. Stevenson scored a stoppage win in the ninth round, but that hasn't kept boxing observers from critiquing his latest performances, a few of which have been underwhelming.
Meanwhile, Zepeda was riding high as a undefeated prospect with an impressive KO percentage, but he only managed a split decision vs. Tevin Farmer (many believed Farmer, a former 130-pound world titlist who knocked down Zepeda in the fourth round, actually should have been awarded the victory) and then followed that up with a razor-thin majority decision in the rematch. Considering Schofield knocked out Farmer in the first round last month, those close victories by Zepeda have been diminished.
But hey, all of that is in the past. And Zepeda is looking to overwhelm Stevenson.
'He's coming in here to throw as many punches as possible, overwhelm me, and try to bully me,' Stevenson said. 'I'm not going to let that happen. I'm going to go out there and do what I do best: win in spectacular fashion. I'll come out there to whoop his a**.'
Clearly, Zepeda would like Stevenson to stand in front of him and trade punches. Even though the light-hitting Farmer dropped Zepeda in their first fight and Stevenson has taken more chances in the ring lately, that's probably not going to happen as much as Zepeda would like.
'He'll have the best version of Shakur Stevenson in front of him,' Stevenson said. 'He will see something different that he hasn't seen before. If he thought I was a skilled fighter before, wait until he sees the best version of myself on fight night. He has no chance.'
Said Stevenson: 'I'm fully aware of Shakur's skillset, and I am doing what needs to be done to win on July 12. Shakur says he's going to stand and fight – let's stand and fight.'
Here's more info on the Shakur Stevenson vs. William Zepeda showdown that U.S. viewers can watch on DAZN PPV for $59.99 beginning at 6 p.m. ET on Saturday.
RIYADH, SAUDI ARABIA - NOVEMBER 16: William Zepeda punches Tevin Farmer during their fight on the ... More Riyadh Season Latino Night at Kingdom Arena on November 16, 2024 in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. (Photo by Cris Esqueda/)
Shakur Stevenson vs. William Zepeda odds
Stevenson is the wide betting favorite at -1200 (bet $1,200 to win $100), while Zepeda is the +700 underdog (win $700 on a $100 wager). I'd avoid Stevenson's money line, but I kind of love a bet on Zepeda there. I'm not predicting Zepeda to pull the upset, but if you think Zepeda would win more than eight out of 100 matches fought against Stevenson (and I think he could), taking Zepeda at +700 could be a good pick. Otherwise, Stevenson winning by decision at -200 is a solid prop bet.
If you were looking for a fun parlay for this weekend's action of boxing (and this is only for entertainment purposes), I might take Stevenson to beat Zepeda by decision at -200, Edgar Berlanga to beat Hamzah Sheeraz at +125, and Alberto Puello to beat Subriel Matias by decision at +140. If all of those hit, you'd make $710 on a $100 wager.
Shakur Stevenson vs. William Zepeda records
At 23-0 (11 KOs), Stevenson is one of the best technical fighters in the world, and he's proved that by beating world titlists Oscar Valdez, Robson Conceicao and Jamel Herring. But even though his last six opponents have a combined record of 104-3, Stevenson still hasn't beaten the elitest of the elite. Zepeda isn't exactly that, but he'll provide a good test with his world-class power.
Zepeda (33-0, 27 KOs) was considered a fast-rising prospect after beating solid fighters like JoJo Diaz and Mercito Gesta. But his last two close fights against Tevin Farmer has raised some alarms about whether Zepeda is too one-dimensional as a fighter.
Shakur Stevenson vs. William Zepeda prediction
Stevenson hasn't faced too many hard challenges during his career – or maybe it's better to say that Stevenson is such a good fighter that the opponents we thought could challenge didn't cause him many problems. Either way, Zepeda seemingly fits into the same category. His power and aggressiveness could give Stevenson issues, but it probably won't. Say Stevenson by decision, somewhere in the 118-110 range.
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