Alalshikh loads up July 12 card, which will include Berlanga-Sheeraz
Also set for New York: Shakur-Zepeda, Puello-Matias, Morrell-Khataev
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Super middleweight contender Edgar Berlanga and Hamzah Sheeraz will meet in a WBC title eliminator on July 12 at a venue to be announced in New York, Turki Alalshikh announced on The Ring magazine website, which he owns.
Also set for the loaded Ring magazine-branded event are three notable undercard fights:
WBC lightweight titlist Shakur Stevenson will face interim titleholder and mandatory challenger William Zepeda in a bout announced earlier in the week.
WBC junior welterweight titlist Alberto Puello will defend against former IBF titleholder Subriel Matias.
Light heavyweight contender David Morrell, a former secondary titlist at light heavyweight and super middleweight, will face unbeaten contender Imam Khataev.
Alalshikh told Fight Freaks on Sunday that it had not been determined if the card would be on DAZN for free to subscribers or on DAZN PPV, and that the decision was up to the streaming service.
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Berlanga (23-1, 18 KOs), 27, a Puerto Rican from Brooklyn, New York, suffered his only loss by decision challenging Canelo Alvarez for the unified/lineal super middleweight title in September. Although Berlanga got knocked down in the third round, he turned in a far better performance that most thought he would.
Berlanga returned on March 15 and knocked out Jonathan Gonzalez-Ortiz in the first round in the co-feature of a Matchroom Boxing card. It was the final bout of Berlanga’s contract with Matchroom Boxing and he and manager Keith Connolly agreed to the co-feature slot for less money rather than the main event for more, which would have also entailed signing a contract extension with Matchroom Boxing.
The gambit paid off as Berlanga became a free agent and landed a significant seven-figure payday against Sheeraz (20-0-1, 17 KOs), 25, of England.
Sheeraz, who is with Queensberry Promotions, will be moving up from middleweight for his first fight since a bitterly disappointing split draw challenging WBC titlist Carlos Adames on Feb. 22 on the Artur Beterbiev-Dmitry Bivol II undercard in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.
Sheeraz was the clear favorite in the fight. The bout with Berlanga will also mark Sheeraz’s first fight since announcing in recent days that he had parted ways with longtime trainer Ricky Funez to join the camp of Andy Lee.
A Sheeraz win would figure to put him in a good position for a fight with Alvarez, who is committed to Alalshikh for his next four bouts.
Stevenson-Zepeda, which was announced a few days ago, matches Stevenson’s superb boxing skills, defense and speed against fellow southpaw Zepeda, who relies on intense pressure, a vaunted body attack and heavy punching.
The WBC ordered a purse bid for the bout on April 7 and gave the sides 30 days to make a deal but they came to an agreement well before the purse bid would have been held May 6. They were on course to fight last year but injuries to both of them delayed the schedule.
While Stevenson was sidelined recovering from wrist surgery, Zepeda (33-0, 27 KOs), 28, of Mexico, won the vacant interim title via split decision over Tevin Farmer in November and won a majority decision over Farmer in an immediate rematch on March 29.
Stevenson (23-0, 11 KOs), 27, of Newark, New Jersey, who has won titles in three divisions, has defended the lightweight title twice, most recently on the Beterbiev-Bivol II, where he scored a ninth-round knockout of late replacement Josh Padley, who filled in on four days’ notice after Floyd Schofield dropped out due to illness.
Puello (24-0, 10 KOs), 30, a southpaw from the Dominican Republic, who is with Premier Boxing Champions, made his first defense on the Gervonta Davis-Lamont Roach undercard on March 1 in Brooklyn, New York, where he escaped with a split decision against mandatory challenger Sandor Martin. Puello won the final three rounds on two scorecards and two of the final three rounds on the third scorecard to pull out the victory.
Since losing his junior welterweight title to Liam Paro by decision last June in Puerto Rico, Matias (22-2, 22 KOs), 33, of Puerto Rico, has won two fights in a row by knockout, most recently an eighth-round knockout of Gabriel Gollaz Valenzuela in an IBF title eliminator on March 1. However, Matias will give up his position with the IBF as he will get the shot at Puello’s WBC crown.
Morrell (11-1, 9 KOs), 27, a Cuban southpaw fighting out of Minneapolis, who is with Warriors Boxing, is coming off his first defeat, a unanimous decision to David Benavidez on Feb. 1 in Las Vegas. Morrell’s WBA “regular” light heavyweight title and Benavidez’s interim belt were on the line.
Khataev (10-0, 9 KOs), 30, who is promoted by Eye of the Tiger, was a 2020 Russian Olympic bronze medalist and now is based in Australia. He is on the fast track as a pro but will be taking a huge step up in competition. He is coming off a near-shutout 10-round decision against Durval Elias Palacio on March 22.
It will be a busy boxing weekend in New York as the Ring card will take place the day after undisputed women’s junior welterweight champion Katie Taylor and Amanda Serrano meet in a trilogy fight at Madison Square Garden in the main event of an all-female card on Netflix.
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Photos: Berlanga: Melina Pizano/Matchroom Boxing; Morrell: Esther Lin/PBC
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Nice, great to see an American based event.
Great card let’s hope it’s free and not ppv