William Zepeda Edges Tevin Farmer at Riyadh’s Latino Night

On November 16 at The Venue Riyadh Season in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, on the undercard for Chris Billam-Smith against Gilberto “Zurdo” Ramirez, we saw William Zepeda (32-0, 27 KOs) dig deep to defeat Tevin Farmer (33-7-1, 8 KOs). The entire card was streamed on DAZN and promoted by Golden Boy.

William Zepeda Defeats Tevin Farmer in Close Riyadh Battle

Zepeda vs. Farmer Recap

The opening round saw Zepeda take the middle of the ring quickly, throwing his jab. “Camaron” seemed to find his range in the first round, with Farmer looking comfortable on the back foot.

The second round saw Farmer start well and land a short left hand at the beginning of the round – but the hand speed of Zepeda and movement ensured he began to take over the round. Over the next couple of rounds, the speed of the Mexican southpaw began to dictate the fight before Farmer landed a counter left hand in round four, which knocked Zepeda down.

At the beginning of the fifth, Farmer landed another eye-catching left. Despite Zepeda being the shaper puncher, the heavy counter left from the American is catching all the attention. The American is picking his shots extremely well and is showing how savvy he is defensively by tying his opponent up and smothering his work.

Read More: William Zepeda Reinforces His Top Lightweight Status

The eighth saw Zepeda land some good body shots, but Farmer fired back where possible and ended the round looking confident. Zepeda seemed to be increasing his output as the fight went on, and he began to create more distance between himself and Farmer so he could fire off his combinations.

The final round saw back-and-forth action with Farmer landing some more eye-catching left hands, but Zepeda’s work rate is unbelievable and I have that as the deciding factor – but what a performance from “2X.”

Both fighters gathered in the ring to hear the scorecards which read 95-94 for Farmer, with the final two cards reading the same for Zepeda, giving him the split decision victory, crowning “Camaron” the WBC interim lightweight title.

Post Fight Quotes

After the fight, Zepeda reflected on the close win: “We knew it was going to be a really tough fight- strong fight. We know that Farmer’s really experienced and a really good fighter. What it shows is that there are lots of things I have to perfect moving forward. But, I’m happy with my performance tonight.”

Reflecting on the knockdown in round four, he said: “When that shot came in, it surprised me a little bit. He knocked my confidence for a little bit. I had to draw on my experience to get me through to win the fight.”

Read More: Oscar Collazo Unifies Minimumweight With TKO of Thammanoon Niyomtrong

On possibly facing Shakur next, he said: “We’re waiting with confidence to receive that offer- that firm offer and for that opportunity. We will obviously take that opportunity.”

Farmer also spoke about the decision: “I don’t know. The people around the world will decide that. The judges gave it to him. It is what it is…. I think the knock down edged me out for sure. thought I had it. That’s why when they said ’94 to 95‘ I just knew I had it because of the knockdown. In fights like these knockdowns definitely make a difference.”

Reflecting on his success in the fight, the American said: “You see that I handled it. I think for somebody just starting outjust like the  guys he’s been fighting that’s definitely a lot of output. But, for a veteran like me, it’s just something I’vealready seen. I brought the fight to him. Like I told you, he wouldn’t have to find me, I would be right there.”