Camaron vs Cabron

William Zepeda and Giovanni Cabrera Clash in Ontario in July

By Lauren Rodriguez

LOS ANGELES-Lightweight fighters William “Camaron” Zepeda (30-0, 26 KO’s) and Giovanni “El Cabron” Cabrera (22-1, 7 KO’s) will take the ring on July 6th in Ontario, CA. The event presented by Golden Boy Promotions will be held at the Toyota Arena and live streamed on DAZN. 

Zepeda will be putting his undefeated reputation on the line in a 12-round bout against the Chicago Mexican. This will be El Camaron’s second time in the ring this year. It was in March that Zepeda fought Maxie Hughes (26-6-2) for only four rounds of the scheduled twelve before Hughes retired from the bout. The 27-year old isn’t underestimating his opponents ability to take the victory come July, keeping his mind on his opponent in the ring.

“At this level, every fighter, you know, is a difficult flight. Because they all want the same thing. You know, they all want what I've got, you know, that's the one thing that I need to do is concentrate on someone at 100. You know, each fight and Cabrera is the type of fighter that he's difficult to, you know, for a lot of fighters. So I have to make sure that I do what I need to do. So when the fight comes, you know, I can keep going because I know that Cabrera is coming to take or he wants to take what I've gotten already and so it's a very important fight,” said Zepeda.

Hailing from San Mateo Atenco, Mexico, Camaron has remained undefeated for almost a decade, with a number of knockouts under his belt. The Mexican southpaw is hoping a shot at a title is in the near future. 

“I've already fought two eliminators, you know, the IBF and WBA. And so we're just waiting for the time when we get the opportunity to actually take on one of these main guys and be able to, you know, get a title shot,” said Zepeda.

Cabrera’s last victory was a unanimous decision against Ricardo Quiroz (13-3-0) in a 10-round bout. Caberera’s only defeat was in July 2023 against Issac ``Pitbull'' Cruz (26-2-1, 18 KO’s). The decision came after 12-rounds and a penalty for headbutting. Although a stain on his record, the orthodox fighter noted the chin and strength it takes to go an entire 12-rounds against Cruz. 

“I took those right on the chin. And you know, I was surprised myself I was a Yo, is he gonna? Maybe I'm getting lucky. Now maybe the next one knocks me out. It took two or three rounds of that to be like, holy shit, like stop running from this guy. You're the bigger, stronger guy. There's nothing that he can do. It's gonna be fun. And I went at it a little bit too late and started putting pressure later on in the fight. I would love that rematch. I would love that rematch, because this time I'll push him back. I know you cannot fight going backwards. He's had that exposed and other fights. And if he's got the balls to do it, let's do it,” said Cabrera.

Training at the world famous Wild Card Boxing, under Freddie Roach, Cabrera appears confident in his ability to take on an opponent with an 86% knockout rate and zero losses. Looking at Cabrera’s former opponents, no one is as experienced of a fighter as Zepeda but proper guidance under Roach can surprise fans. 

“Well, I think there shouldn't be a doubt in anyone's mind if I dominate this guy and I beat him and I am the number one contender in the world. That said, I would love to fight Shakur Stevenson and I don't know why they're matching them with- I don't even know the guy's name. No disrespect, but to be a world champion, you know, you should be taking on guys that are like me. Not someone who just lost in their last fight, “ said Cabrera.

The independent boxer doesn't have any desire to sign to any promoters although he isn't against working with them. 

“Well, when I do, when I do, when I'm looking, you know I'm inspired by guys like Sugar Ray Robinson. Businessmen like Floyd Mayweather. And obviously, I would like to be part of my own promotion, as well. But I would love to work with every promoter that is interested,” said Cabrera.

As of now, there are only two more bouts for certain on the card. Welterweight Alexis Rocha (24-2, 16 KO’s) is set to take on Raul Curiel (15-0, 13 KO’s).

A fight in the junior bantamweight division is also set between Ricardo Sandoval (24-2, 17 KO’s) and Angel Ramos Serrano (30-1-2, 19 KO’s).