Zepeda vs Hughes

Who won Zepeda vs Hughes?

William Zepeda beat Maxi Hughes by technical knockout in the 4th round on Saturday 16th March 2024 at The Chelsea in Las Vegas.

The scorecards were announced as in favor of winner William Zepeda.

The fight was scheduled to take place over 12 rounds in the Lightweight division, which meant the weight limit was 135 pounds (9.6 stone or 61.2 KG).

This contest was an eliminator for the vacant IBF lightweight championship of the world.

The undercard featured the clash of Schofield vs Suero.

Zepeda vs Hughes stats

William Zepeda stepped into the ring with an undefeated record of 29 wins, zero loses and 0 draws, 25 of those wins coming by the way of knock out.

Maxi Hughes made his way to the ring with a record of 26 wins, 6 loses and 2 draws, with 5 of those wins by knock out.

The stats suggested Zepeda had a massive power advantage over Hughes, boosting at 86% knock out percentage over Hughes' 19%.

William Zepeda was the younger man by 7 years, at 27 years old.

Zepeda had a height advantage of 2 inches over Hughes. That also extended to a 3-inch reach advantage.

Both William Zepeda & Maxi Hughes fought out of a southpaw stance.

Zepeda was the less experienced professional fighter, having had 5 less fights, and made his debut in 2015, 5 year and 1 month later than Hughes, whose first professional fight was in 2010. He had fought 112 less professional rounds, 135 to Hughes' 247.

William Zepeda went into the fight ranked number 1 by the WBA, 1 by the WBC, 3 by the WBO and 6 by the IBF at lightweight.

Maxi Hughes was ranked number 5 by the WBA, 6 by the WBC, 14 by the WBO and 4 by the IBF in the 135lb division.

Zepeda vs Hughes form

Zepeda remained undefeated as a professional, stopping 3 of his last 5 opponents.

In his last fight leading up to this contest, he had won against Mercito Gesta on 16th September 2023 by knockout in the 6th round at Commerce Casino, Commerce, United States.

Previous to that, he had won against Jaime Arboleda on 29th April 2023 by knockout in the 2nd round at College Park Center, Arlington.

Going into that contest, he had beat Joseph ‘Jo Jo’ Diaz on 29th October 2022 by unanimous decision in their 12 round contest at Pechanga Arena, San Diego.

Before that, he had defeated Rene Alvarado on 14th May 2022 by unanimous decision in their 10 round contest at Toyota Arena, California.

He had won against Yerel Siezar on 19th February 2022 by knockout in the 3rd round at Plaza Monumental, Baja California, Mexico.

Hughes had beaten 4 of his last 5 opponents, stopping 1 of them, going the distance 3 times.

In his last fight before this contest, he had lost to George Kambosos on 22nd July 2023 by majority decision in their IBF World Lightweight eliminator fight at FireLake Arena, Shawnee, United States.

Previous to that, he had defeated Kid Galahad on 24th September 2022 by majority decision in their 12 round contest at Nottingham Arena, Nottingham, United Kingdom.

Going into that contest, he had beat Ryan Walsh on 26th March 2022 by unanimous decision in their 12 round contest at First Direct Arena, Yorkshire.

Before that, he had won against Jovanni Straffon on 4th September 2021 by unanimous decision in their 12 round contest at Emerald Headingley Stadium, Leeds.

He had beat Paul Hyland Jnr on 19th March 2021 by technical knockout in the 8th round in their BBBOC British Lightweight championship fight at Bolton Whites Hotel (formerly De Vere Whites), Lancashire.

Activity check

In terms of activity leading into the fight, William Zepeda had been fighting more than Maxi Hughes.

Going to this contest, William Zepeda had last fought 6 months ago, while Maxi Hughes' last outing had been 7 months and 23 days ago.

Zepeda's last 5 fights had come over a period of 2 years and 26 days, meaning he had been fighting on average every 5 months. In those fights, he fought a total of 33 rounds, meaning that they had lasted 6.6 rounds on average.

Hughes' last 5 fights had come over a period of 2 years, 11 months and 26 days, meaning he had been fighting on average every 7 months and 6 days. In those fights, he fought a total of 56 rounds, meaning that they had lasted 11.2 rounds on average.

What time did Zepeda vs Hughes start?

The fighters were expected to ringwalk at around 12:00 AM EST / 9:00 PM PST at The Chelsea, Las Vegas, United States, which was around 4:00 AM GMT in the UK.

Who broadcast Zepeda vs Hughes?

The DAZN show is expected to begin at 7:00 PM EST / 4:00 PM PST. The DAZN Global broadcast of the card is expected to start at 12:00 AM (BTS).

What were the odds on Zepeda vs Hughes?

William Zepeda was a 1/10 (-1100) favourite going into the contest, while Maxi Hughes made his way into the ring at 6/1 (+650) with oddsmakers.