The WBC lightweight division gets a new champion on Saturday, August 1. Lamont Roach Jr. meets William Zepeda at The Theater at Virgin Hotels Las Vegas in a high-stakes clash for the vacant 135-pound belt.
This isn’t just a standard title fight. The August 1 card marks the official debut of “The Fight,” a brand-new monthly boxing series produced through a broadcast partnership between TNT Sports and DAZN. Fans in the United States can watch the event on DAZN, TNT, and truTV. Coverage kicks off at 8 p.m. ET. Main event ring walks are anticipated around 11 p.m. ET.
Roach (25-1-3, 10 KOs) desperately needs a definitive outcome. He enters this bout following a frustrating stretch of three consecutive draws in title matchups. That run includes highly scrutinized majority draws against Isaac Cruz in December 2025 and Gervonta Davis earlier that March. The Davis fight ended in controversy after the referee failed to count a legitimate knockdown in Roach’s favor. That missed call ultimately led to an unsuccessful appeal with the New York State Athletic Commission.
Now permanently moving into the 135-pound division, Roach no longer requires special WBA weight dispensations. The WBC explicitly ordered this matchup to fill their vacant lightweight championship. Across the ring, Zepeda (33-1, 27 KOs) steps onto the canvas looking to rebound from the first professional loss of his career. Golden Boy Promotions, TGB Promotions, and ProBox Promotions are co-promoting the event, officially confirmed for August 1.
The co-feature brings massive stakes of its own. Undefeated Raymond Muratalla (24-0, 17 KOs) will defend his IBF lightweight title against Olympic gold medalist Robson Conceicao (21-3-1, 10 KOs) right before the main event.
Lightweight Unification Stakes Shadow The Virgin Hotels Debut
By placing Muratalla and Conceicao in the co-main slot, the promoters built an immediate roadmap for the lightweight division. Whoever leaves Las Vegas with the vacant WBC belt will instantly share a timeline with the active IBF champion. That scheduling alignment perfectly sets the stage for a major unification bout later this year.
Furthermore, moving premium boxing back to basic cable via TNT and truTV represents a massive strategy shift for DAZN. The platform is actively trading exclusive paywall revenue for broader audience reach in the United States. Launching this new broadcast era with a fight of this caliber ensures the network can immediately gauge cable viewership interest ahead of their upcoming monthly events.