Shakur has firsthand experience with Zepeda’s style. Although he won a unanimous decision over the unbeaten Mexican last year, many fans believed the fight was much closer than the official scorecards reflected. Zepeda consistently applied pressure and invested in the body throughout the contest. While the broadcast team often called those shots blocked, replay angles frequently showed them landing cleanly to Stevenson’s midsection.
Stevenson’s confidence in Roach is also interesting when viewed alongside Roach’s recent performances.
Roach is coming off back-to-back draws against Gervonta Davis and Isaac Cruz, but neither performance suggested he has an obvious stylistic advantage over a pressure fighter like Zepeda. Many fans felt Pitbull Cruz landed the more meaningful punches in their bout, while Roach spent long stretches boxing off the back foot.
The same issue surfaced earlier in his career when he challenged Jamel Herring for the WBO super featherweight title in 2019. Herring repeatedly came forward, backed Roach up and won many of the exchanges. Rather than standing his ground, Roach often retreated, allowing Herring to dictate the pace of the fight.
That could be a dangerous approach against Zepeda.
Unlike Herring, Zepeda throws punches in relentless volume and attacks the body from the opening bell. Giving ground against him can quickly turn into a losing strategy if judges reward effective aggression and sustained body work.
Shakur’s prediction also fits a pattern that has developed over the past year. Among the leading lightweights, Roach is the opponent Stevenson has publicly expressed the most interest in facing. He has not shown the same enthusiasm for fights against Abdullah Mason, Floyd Schofield Jr., Raymond Muratalla, Alan Chaves or Jadier Herrera.
Roach is an accomplished technician, but he is arguably the lightest puncher among that group. Mason, Schofield, Muratalla, Chaves and Herrera all possess considerably more stopping power, making them stylistically more dangerous opponents.
Whether Shakur’s preference reflects business, stylistic appreciation or simple confidence in Roach’s abilities is hard to know. What is clear is that he is backing a fighter whose recent performances have raised as many questions as answers against the kind of relentless pressure that has become Zepeda’s trademark.
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