William Zepeda defeated Lamont Roach Jr by unanimous decision to win the vacant WBC lightweight championship at The Theater at Virgin Hotels in Las Vegas. The victory marks Zepeda’s first world title, following an unsuccessful bid against Shakur Stevenson.
The judges scored the contest 117-111, 117-111, and 118-110 for Zepeda. The Mexican southpaw established the pace from the start, using intelligent footwork to cut off the ring and force Roach backward under a high-volume attack. Mixing punches to the head and body, Zepeda maintained his trademark offensive output and rarely gave Roach time to set his feet. While Roach found success with single counterpunches, those openings were brief. Zepeda closed the distance immediately after exchanges, stopping Roach from building extended combinations and repeatedly driving him back toward the ropes.
There were no knockdowns in the match. Still, Zepeda’s continuous body work steadily sapped Roach’s movement as the bout wore on.
With Roach’s movement slowed, Zepeda controlled the second half of the fight by staying within effective range while Roach searched for answers on the retreat. The defeat ends Roach’s ambition of becoming a two-division world champion. Roach, whose record falls to 25-2-3 with 10 knockouts, had entered the ring following consecutive majority draws against Gervonta Davis and Isaac Cruz. Zepeda now improves to 34-1 with 27 knockouts, securing his first world title less than twelve months after his loss to Stevenson.
