William Zepeda barely secured another victory against Tevin Farmer, winning by a narrow decision. Fighting in Cancun, Zepeda aimed to improve upon his previous split decision win four months earlier in Riyadh, which was a very close 10-round fight. This time, in a 12-round match, Farmer again proved to be a difficult opponent.
Zepeda used his usual strategy: constant pressure, a high number of punches, and powerful hits to wear down his opponents. This tactic had been very effective for him in the past, until he faced Farmer. The experienced boxer from Philadelphia, known for his ring intelligence, was not intimidated. In the first round, Zepeda landed a showy three-punch combination that impressed the crowd but didn`t really affect Farmer, suggesting a challenging fight was ahead.
The Cancun crowd cheered loudly for every successful move by Zepeda, but Farmer`s southpaw jab soon became effective. However, it couldn`t completely protect him from Zepeda`s body punches. By the fifth round, signs of trouble appeared as Farmer`s left arm seemed to weaken, with his hand or elbow causing him visible discomfort.
Despite the injury, Farmer continued to use his left jab to snap Zepeda`s head back. Then, with just 40 seconds remaining in the round, Zepeda almost finished the fight. A series of left and right punches struck Farmer, who lowered his guard – possibly due to the injury – and offered little defense. Dodging punches wasn`t enough against Zepeda`s aggressive attacks, and body shots landed with force. But Farmer responded with a strong uppercut, ending the round with a statement of defiance.
Giving up was not an option for Farmer. His determination was clear as he continued to fight, exchanging skill for Zepeda`s relentless pressure. Both fighters showed their strengths: Zepeda pushed forward with powerful hooks, while Farmer dodged and countered with crosses and uppercuts. Neither fighter yielded. The final round was controversial – a sweeping left from Farmer knocked Zepeda down, but referee Michael Griffin ruled it a slip, causing anger among the crowd.
In the end, the judges made the decision: Ed Pearson from Canada scored it a draw at 114-114, Nathan Palmer from the USA gave Zepeda a slight advantage of 115-113, and Rafael Ortiz Loyo from Mexico scored it 116-112 for the local fighter. The majority decision allowed Zepeda to keep his WBC Interim lightweight title, setting up a potential fight with the full champion Shakur Stevenson. However, on a different night, Farmer might have been the winner.
Zepeda`s record improves to 33 wins and 0 losses, with 27 knockouts, while Farmer`s record falls to 33 wins, 8 losses, and 1 draw, with 8 knockouts.
