The World Boxing Council (WBC) has ordered a title bout between Shakur Stevenson and William Zepeda. Notably, no announcement has been made from the sanctioning body itself, which raises more than a couple eyebrows due to the WBC being known for their consistency in publicly declaring their decisions or mandates. Oscar De La Hoya also confirmed yesterday that the fight had been ordered during a video released yesterday―during which he let slip Zepeda’s intentions to potentially avoid Stevenson.
BoxingScene’s Lance Pugmire reported earlier this week that the WBC had ordered a purse bid between American WBC lightweight (135 lbs) champion Shakur Stevenson (22-0, 10 KO’s) and #1-rated [with every sanctioning body] Mexican contender William Zepeda (31-0, 27 KO’s).
The recent revelation of this ordered purse bid confirms that the mandate for the two to fight had been made weeks before, and that both fighters’ teams as well as the WBC had endeavored to keep this order hidden for unknown reasons.
A mandate between Stevenson and Zepeda would not have gone unnoticed by the public, as the match would be considered high-profile due to the reputation of both fighters. Stevenson, a multi-weight division champion who unified at super featherweight (130 lbs) before moving to lightweight, is regarded as one of the best American talents but has been sorely lacking in facing a notable opponent.
In that sense, Zepeda would be the perfect opponent for Stevenson to be matched with, offering him the opportunity to prove his status as one of the best of his generation, while Zepeda himself would gain the opportunity to become a world champion and establish himself as the next up-and-coming king of the 135 lbs division.
Unfortunately, this potentially exciting America―Mexico match-up is at risk of never occurring after Golden Boy Promotions founder Oscar De La Hoya, Zepeda’s promoter, ridiculed the WBC’s mandate and asserted that he had three other options for Zepeda to face during a self-made social media show named “Clap Back Thursdays“.
“Let’s start with the WBC ordering Shakur Stevenson versus William Zepeda. Ordering? What does that mean? They ordered Canelo [Alvarez]-[David] Benavidez like three years ago―and that hasn’t happened. William will make his decision very soon, and he has three other options. Shakur Stevenson, you’re a free agent, you’re a great fighter, great talent, but not for me. I believe that when somebody says, ‘[I’m] not fighting for the public’, I cannot promote them.”
De La Hoya’s response might explain the WBC’s decision to keep their mandate concealed, as perhaps they had already deduced that Zepeda never had the intention to face Stevenson. Given De La Hoya spoke on Zepeda’s behalf, it appears the Mexican fighter has no actual intentions to face Stevenson in lieu of “three other options”.
These options would have to pertain to the three other champions in the division―American WBA champion Gervonta Davis (30-0, 28 KO’s), Ukrainian IBF champion Vasyl Lomachenko (18-3, 12 KO’s) and Ukrainian WBO champion Denys Berinchyk (19-0, 9 KO’s)―as Zepeda’s #1 contender status on every sanctioning board signifies he is overdue for a world title opportunity.
Unfortunately for Zepeda, this stance might backfire tremendously with Davis and Lomachenko rumored to be in negotiations for a fight later this year, while Berinchyk could opt to spurn Zepeda in favor of #2 WBO-ranked 135 lbs American contender Raymond Muratalla (21-0, 16 KO’s). Given Muratalla’s recent callout of Berinchyk and Zepeda’s own reputation making him a more dangerous option, Zepeda would benefit from at least considering Stevenson as an opponent.
Last week, De La Hoya already made a potential fight between Zepeda and Stevenson harder by asserting Stevenson would need to sign with Golden Boy to land a fight with the Mexican contender. Taking into account that Zepeda had to have been aware of the WBC’s mandate to fight Stevenson, there appears to be a clear intent by Zepeda to actively avoid facing Stevenson―and thereby purposefully avoid getting an opportunity to become a world champion.
