Lightweight contender William ‘El Camarón’ Zepeda 29-0 (25) is looking forward to making his Las Vegas debut when he takes on Maxi ‘Maximus’ Hughes 26-6-2 (5) at The Chelsea at The Cosmopolitan of Las Vegas on Saturday night.
The 27-year-old Mexican knockout artist says a win in the fight capital of the world will be a dream come true.
“When I was younger, kids around me would ask when will you fight in Vegas to make fun of me. Well, now I can answer them. I’m fighting in Vegas this Saturday,” Zepeda said.
“I know Maxi Hughes is a great opponent and that’s why we’re fighting him. And I’m just thankful with my teammates, Carlos Duarte, my team, my father, all my people from Jiquipilco where I trained every single day for this fight.
“I want to thank Golden Boy, I want to thank Eric and thank everybody for being here. I am ready for everyone in the lightweight division.”
The fight will serve as a dual IBF and WBA eliminator. Baltimore southpaw Gervonta ‘Tank’ Davis 29-0 (27) is the WBA champion while the vacant IBF belt will be contested between Australian George ‘Ferocious’ Kambosos Jr 21-2 (10) and Ukrainian lefty Vasiliy Lomachenko 17-3 (11) in May.
British southpaw Hughes, 34, lost a hotly disputed majority decision to Kambosos in July last year and says he knows he can mix it with the best.
“So very happy to be here. I’m here because of merit. The IBF have ordered me and William to fight, so you know, both of us are here on merit. Because we are the best next people in mind going forward,” Hughes said.
“You know, William, we’ve watched him, we know what he’s about. And we’ve shown him that respect in our preparation. My team down here have put the working day in, day out, and on Saturday night, we’ll get that win and be a step closer to a world title.”
The Zepeda versus Hughes fight is presented by Golden Boy and is co-promoted with DiBella Entertainment.
“On Saturday, fans will be treated to yet another outstanding Golden Boy card as we continue to pit the best versus the best with the fans being the winners regardless of who comes out on top,” said Oscar De La Hoya, CEO and chairman on Golden Boy Promotions.
“This Saturday, William Zepeda and Maxi Hughes will slug it out with a world championship title shot on the line. I expect an absolute barnburner in the main event and, as always, a stacked undercard that will feature exciting fights, some of our top prospects and big knockouts.”
“It took about 30 minutes to do this fight and three phone calls,” said Lou DiBella, president of DiBella Entertainment. “And it was such a pleasure to work with professionals and to work with somebody that treats not only his fighters, but the fighter on the other side of the deal with the respect they deserve. And from me and Maxi’s team, thank you to Golden Boy.”
