LAS VEGAS –William Zepeda sent a savage message to the rest of the field in the lightweight division.

The high-octane contender overwhelmed England’s Maxi Hughes to advance to the top of the rankings. A barrage of body punches forced Hughes’ corner to pull their charge after the fourth round of their DAZN main event Saturday from The Cosmopolitan of Las Vegas.

With the win, Zepeda became the mandatory challenger both with the WBA and IBF. The 27-year-old Mexican southpaw already held that position with the WBC headed into the fight.

“Thirty different camps. Thirty different wins,” Zepeda told DAZN’s Chris Mannix after his latest win.

Zepeda applied his signature pressure in the opening round, though not with immediate results. Hughes put his infighting skills to use as he stood in the pocket and managed to slip most of the incoming. A left to the body by Hughes was an honest effort to remind Zepeda that he was here to fight.

Zepeda changed that in a big way in round two.

Alternating chants of ‘Mexico’ and ‘Yorkshire’ motivated both fighters to stand and deliver. It perfectly played into Zepeda’s lethal hands. The Ring’s No. 5-rated lightweight consistently tagged Hughes to the body, often mixed in with uppercuts. Hughes, No. 9 at 135, took the shots well but was already at a power deficit on paper.

In reality, he didn’t have anything to force Zepeda to take a backwards step.

Referee Robert Hoyle observed Hughes’ body language at the end of a brutal third round. Zepeda (30-0, 26 knockouts) continued with his body attack. A right hook by the Mexican southpaw landed just under the left elbow of Hughes, who was forced in a defensive shell. Enough right hooks also found their way home to severely redden the left eye of Hughes.

“That was what we worked on throughout this camp,” Zepeda told The Ring. “It’s no secret, just an old-school approach. We target the body and work our way up to the head. We were very pleased with the results tonight.”

Zepeda stayed the course in round four. Hughes tried in vain to find separation between the two but Zepeda refused to let him off the hook—literally. A constant barrage of body shots took its toll on Hughes, who was slowed to a crawl and his offense all but nonexistent.

A long hard look was given to Hughes (26-7-2, 5 KOs) by both Hoyle and the ringside physician. A brief discussion concluded with Fields waving his arms to signal the end of the fight.

“I really felt the pain from those body shots in round three,” Hughes admitted to The Ring. “We tried different things, tried to make ourselves smaller. I just couldn’t keep him off me.

“My corner knows me too well. They knew the punishment I was taking and decided to stop the fight.”

Hughes was statistically outgunned across the board. Zepeda landed 161-of-408 total punches (39.5%), an average of 102 punches per round according to Compubox. Hughes was credited with landing just 53-of-221 (24%) overall, including 34-of-111 power shots.

Zepeda connected on 105-of-228 (46.1%) of his power punches, 49 of which landed to the body.

The loss was the second in a row for Hughes, this time without dispute. The 34-year-old British southpaw was considered unlucky in a majority-decision defeat to George Kambosos Jr. (21-2, 10 KOs), No. 8 at 135, last July 22 in Shawnee, Oklahoma.

Hughes won seven in a row prior to that night, often in fights where he was pegged as the opponent. Upset wins over Jono Carroll, unbeaten Viktor Kotochigov and former titlist Kid Galahad ruined plans for those fighters and the event promoters.

On Saturday, he just ran into a different type of animal altogether in Zepeda.

“Lightweight is stacked,” Hughes noted. “But he’s good enough to compete with any of them.”

Zepeda picked up his third straight stoppage win, this one versus a perennial top ten contender. Next in his sights is a major title.

Heading into this weekend, Zepeda and Hughes both openly expressed interest in the upcoming IBF title fight. Kambosos will face Ukraine’s Vasiliy Lomachenko (17-3, 11 KOs), No. 1 at 135, on May 12 in Perth, Australia.

Zepeda should be next in line from a sanctioning body standpoint. The same goes for his place with the WBA. Gervonta Davis (29-0, 27 KOs), No. 2 at 135, next defends versus Ring No. 6 Frank Martin (17-0, 12 KOs) likely on June 15 in Las Vegas.

However, it’s his place with the WBC that truly piques Zepeda’s interest.

“In a perfect world, I want Shakur next,” insisted Zepeda.

The callout is in reference to Shakur Stevenson (21-0, 10 KOs), a three-division and current WBC 135-pound titlist. An opponent is not yet attached to a July 6 date reserved for the former Ring 130-pound champ and No. 4-rated lightweight in his hometown of Newark, New Jersey.

“I’m ready to answer that call,” stated Zepeda. “We’re going to sit down as a team and discuss what’s next for me. But I really feel out of all the champions out there, my style and Shakur’s match up the best. He needs an opponent and July is perfect timing for me to return.”

Jake Donovan is a senior writer for The Ring and vice president of the Boxing Writers Association of America.
Follow @JakeNDaBox

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