By Mark Eisner: Contender William Zepeda (29-0, 25 KOs) threw an enormous amount of shots en route to stopping former lightweight world title challenger Mercito ‘No Mercy’ Gesta (34-4-3, 17 KOs) in the sixth round knockout on Saturday night in their headliner in Commerce, California.

Throwing over 100+ punches per round, the much bigger-looking 27-year-old Zepeda, who looked like a small welterweight, wore down the 35-year-old Gesta with nonstop pressure and punches.

In the sixth round, Zepeda trapped Gesta against the rounds and unloaded with nonstop shots, resulting in Gesta’s corner letting the referee know to stop the fight. The time of the stoppage was at 1:30 of round six.

The boxing live results of tonight’s card will be shown below.

Featherweight prospect Victor Morales (19-0-1, 9 KOs) had all he could handle tonight in the chief support fight, beating the big punching Edwin Palomares (18-5-2, 9 KOs) by a 10 round unanimous decision in a fight a lot closer than two of the scores handed down by the judges. Palomares punished Morales with heavy shots through the first four rounds, forcing him to get on his bike. In the sixth round, Morales suffered a cut over his left eye from a hard left hand from Palomares. The referee ruled that the cut was caused by a clash of heads, which wasn’t the case. From that point on, Morales moved constantly, throwing pot shots, combinations and tying up Palomares. In the tenth round, Morales went on the attack, hurting Palomares with hard shots, and had him on the verge of a knockout as the fight ended. The scores were 96-94, 100-90, and 99-91. Boxing News 24 scored it 96-94 for Morales. The two referees that scored it wide for Morales gave Palomares no credit for the good work that he did. It was a good win for Morales, but he’s got a long way to go before he’s ready to take on any of the world champions in the division. If this had been Luis Alberto Lopez in there tonight, Morales wouldn’t have made it past the sixth round. He doesn’t have enough pop in his punches. Morales is going to have to figure out how he’ll deal with the bigger punchers in the division before he eventually fights for a world title because he would be food for the champions right now. When you struggle against journeymen-level opposition like Morales did tonight, it’s a bad sign.
IBF & WBO female world minimumweight champion Yokasta Valle (29-2, 9 KOs) defeated Maria Micheo Santizo (11-4, 6 KOs) by a lopsided 10 round unanimous decision. Valle looked a lot bigger after rehydrating overnight and used her size & power advantage to dominate the volume-punching 38-year-old Santizo. Repeatedly, Valle caught Santizo with big shots but was unable to hurt her. In the sixth round, Valle caught Santizo with a big left hook that caused her to stagger backward. In the seventh, Valle suffered a cut on the bridge of her nose from a clash of heads. The scores were 100-90, 99-91 and 99-91. The fight was arguably the most entertaining bout on tonight’s card thus far.
Darius Fulghum (7-0, 7 KOs) stopped journeyman Ricardo Adrian Luna (25-11-2, 16 KOs) in the second round of a middleweight contest. The 27-year-old Fulghum landed a short left hook on the inside that sent Luna down on his knees in round two. The contest was then halted. Luna was bleeding from the side of his head and had difficulty seeing.
Middleweight prospect Eric Priest (11-0, 7 KOs) kept his unbeaten record intact with a grueling eight round majority decision victory over Denmark’s Simon Madsen (13-2, 10 KOs). The majority of the fight was fought on the inside, with both guys trading shots without thinking about defense. From the fifth round on, the 24-year-old Priest pulled away, outworking Madsen and landing the harder shots. The scores were 79-73, 80-72, and 76-76. Priest didn’t show much in the way of power and will need to improve in this area if he wants to compete with the more powerful middleweights. Also, he gets hit too much and can’t afford to fight like that against better opposition.

Lightweight William Zepeda will be stepping up in class against the experienced, well-traveled veteran Mercito Gesta in the main event on DAZN from Commerce, California. Zepeda (28-0, 24 KOs) must win tonight because he’s ranked #2 WBA and in position for that belt once it becomes free.

The Zepeda vs. Gesta event starts at 8:00 p.m. ET on DAZN. Zepeda will take on the former 135-lb world title challenger Gesta (34-3-3, 17 KO) in a twelve round bout.

Zepeda has lost a degree of popularity recently for not agreeing to fight lightweight newcomer Shakur Stevenson, who is fighting for the vacant WBO 135-lb title against Edwin De Los Santos on November 16th.

It could have been Zepeda who is fighting for the vacant WBC belt, but it’s the ambitious go-getter De Los Santos who is taking the fight.

In the co-feature fight, featherweight Victor Morales (18-0-1,9 KOs) battles Edwin Palomares (18-4-2, 9 KOs) in a 10 round fight.

Also on the card is female IBF & WBO World minimumweight champion Yokasta Valle (28-2, 9 KOs), defending her titles in a ten round contest against Maria Santizo (11-3, 6 KOs).

William Zepeda with something to prove

“This card the staff at Golden Boy put together, keeping the fans in mind and keeping the tradition alive on September 16th,” said Oscar De La Hoya to Golden Boy Promotions about tonight’s William Zepeda vs. Mercito Gesta card.

“What can I say about [featherweight] Victor Morales, who just knocked out a De LaHoya [Diego]. Not only a De La Hoya but a De LaHoya who was crafty and an incredible fighter, and he knocked him out.

“That’s what boxing is all about; that’s what fighting is all about. So now Victor has another great chance to fight another great Mexican [Edwin Palomares (18-4-2, 9 KOs] in the co-main event on September 16th. That’s what it’s all about.

“The main event, I really can’t describe how excited I am for this fight,” Oscar continued. “Gesta has proven over and over again why he belongs on the big stage, and he’s not done yet.

“He’s coming off a great win over JoJo Diaz. He showed heart; he showed everything that you have to show to work your way up to be a world champion.

“Then you have William Zepeda, a fighter who not only is undefeated but is fighting the tough fights. He’s knocking everybody out, and he’s still working hard, and he still has something to prove.

“So September 16th is proving you belong, proving that you can shine on the big stage when all these legends in the past in front of you, paved the way, carved out that road for you to be able to showcase your talent on a special day like Mexican Independence weekend,” said De La Hoya.