Terence Crawford Surprised By William Zepeda’s New Style

Terence Crawford expected to see the same William Zepeda that lost to Shakur Stevenson. Instead, he watched a more complete fighter dismantle Lamont Roach Jr. on the way to capturing the vacant WBC lightweight title Saturday night in Las Vegas.

Crawford admitted Zepeda surprised him from the opening round. Rather than relying solely on relentless pressure, the Mexican southpaw mixed in better footwork, angles and distance management that repeatedly disrupted Roach’s counterpunching.

“I wasn’t ready for that,” Crawford said to the TNT post-fight panel about Zepeda’s performance. “From round one, look at his movement, his footwork, his distance, his range, his angles, his feints, his jab, his counter ability, his punch placement. I was looking for the straight come forward type fighter.”

Crawford’s analysis echoed what Zepeda revealed after the fight. The new champion said his loss to Stevenson gave his team a full year to study what needed to change, and many of those adjustments showed up against Roach.

“We worked on many things,” Zepeda said. “We studied his videos, watched our own fights, improved our preparation, worked with a sports psychologist, and kept improving every day. The mind is the most important muscle.”

Crawford also credited Zepeda’s body attack for gradually taking away Roach’s offense.

“Once he started going to the body, here he comes,” Crawford said. “Roach hit him with some good shots, but it’d be one shot. He’d eat it and come right back.”

Crawford’s breakdown reinforced what both fighters acknowledged after the final bell. Roach prepared for a pressure fighter, but Zepeda added movement, patience and smarter distance control to his attack. Those adjustments helped him capture the first world title of his career while showing a different side of his game than many expected.

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