MEXICO CITY — The WBC has ordered a lightweight title consolidation between reigning champion William Zepeda and interim champion Jadier Herrera, with Frank Warren confirming the pair have until Oct. 20 to come to terms. The rare move reduces the sanctioning body's titles at 135 pounds and sets up a mandatory clash for the outright championship.
The order follows Shakur Stevenson's move up in weight to challenge Teofimo Lopez for super lightweight gold. Herrera (18-0, 16 KO) was cleared to fight Ricardo Nunez for the interim belt and hammered the veteran into submission to claim it. The WBC subsequently stripped Stevenson over unpaid sanctioning fees, then bypassed the usual step of elevating Herrera, instead allowing "Camaron" Zepeda (34-1, 27 KO) to punch his way past Lamont Roach Jr for the vacant full title this past August.
Zepeda prevailed against Roach to capture the real hardware and now stands as the division's champion in the post-Stevenson era. Herrera, 24, enters as a heavy underdog whose best victory came against Nunez on the heels of Nunez's DQ loss to Jon Fernandez. It is a tall order for the unbeaten interim titleholder, but both the fighter and Warren want the fight.
Unless Zepeda can secure a unification with Abdullah Mason or elects to vacate the title, all signs point to Herrera getting his shot at the full championship. The Oct. 20 deadline gives both camps time to negotiate before the WBC would call purse bids.