Boxing
STEVE BUNCE: Hamzah Sheeraz’s risk against Edgar Berlanga reveals his greatest attribute
Berlanga vs Sheeraz - July 12 DAZN PPV - Buy now
Hamzah Sheeraz had a bad night in February when he fought for the world title in Saudi Arabia. He knows he was lucky to leave the ring with a draw.
This Saturday, in New York City, he returns to the ring at a new weight and in a bold fight against Edgar Berlanga. It is the type of fight that most men fresh from a disappointing night would avoid.
Sheeraz deserves credit for opting to fight again at the very highest level and not taking the safe and sensible route back to a world-title fight. Berlanga is from New York, lives in Brooklyn, and his only loss was to the world’s best fighter, Saul 'Canelo' Alvarez. Also, he is fighting at his weight.
It is a big test, an unusual test for Sheeraz, even at a time when the Saudi Arabian money is persuading normally reluctant managers and promoters to put their men in a relentless cycle of hard, hard fights.
Back in February, Sheeraz fought Carlos Adames for the WBC middleweight title; Adames was not glamorous, not considered one of the division's elite or one of the big names. However, he was very good on the night and did more than enough to beat Sheeraz.
At the end, one judge correctly went for Adames by 10 rounds to two, but the other two judges clearly watched a different fight; one judge had it a draw, and one went for Sheeraz by just one round. Sheeraz knew that he had not done enough, and he also knew that he could have done better. Sheeraz has always been honest and there was no outcry, because the right man left with the title.
Dazn MediaIn the aftermath, Sheeraz, who is 26 now, made a few changes; he moved from the middleweight division to super-middleweight, and he finished a 10-fight relationship with Californian trainer Ricky Funez. On Saturday night at the Louis Armstrong Stadium, in New York, Irishman Andy Lee will be in Sheeraz’s corner.
Lee, who once held a version of the middleweight world title, is now based in Dublin; he was born in east London, boxed for the Repton club in Bethnal Green, represented Ireland at the 2004 Olympics and was a professional with Manny Steward in the last great days of the Kronk gym in Detroit. Lee now has an impressive list of fighters, and Sheeraz seems to me like a very smart fit.
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Sheeraz was on a winning streak of 21 going into the Adames fight and had stopped and dropped and knocked out his last 15 opponents; he was on a great run in 2024 when he beat the highly regarded and unbeaten “Ammo” Williams in 11 rounds, and then beat Tyler Denny in two for the European middleweight title. In the Adames fight, Sheeraz was too hesitant and lacked an edge, the confident edge of a proven puncher. He looked a little lost at times, and perhaps that is doing Adames a disservice, but Sheeraz could certainly have done more.
The changes in weight and corner team will hopefully work; Berlanga is a danger, make no mistake. The super-middleweight limit is an increase of 8lb and Sheeraz, who is a big 6ft 3in, will still have to work hard to make the 167lb limit.
Berlanga is also a boxing baby at 28, his only loss was last year over 12 rounds against Alvarez; there has been one quick blowout since. Berlanga has stopped or knocked out 18 of the 23 men he has beaten; so far, 22 of his 24 fights have been above the middleweight limit. He is also tall, standing 6ft 1in, and will not be fighting in Sheeraz’s shadow. Sheeraz, by contrast, was only a middleweight for eight fights before the move.
This week, Berlanga will be on the ground in New York, giving tickets away to “kids and cops” in Brooklyn. The American will no doubt have the crowd on his side when the lights dim on Saturday night. The outdoor tennis Stadium at Flushing Meadows can hold 14,000 and might just be one of the great venues for boxing – promoters have wanted to put a fight on at Wimbledon Centre Court for decades.
The Sheeraz story took a hit in the Adames fight, and bouncing back with the Berlanga fight is the type of risk that modern boxers are always accused of never taking. Last year, after stopping Denny at Wembley Stadium, it was announced that Sheeraz could finally pay back his family the grand sum of £800,000 that they had invested in his boxing education. He had spent nearly five years with Funez in California, learning his fighting trade and making sacrifices.
The Adames fight was supposed to be the start of the glory road, but instead it was another lesson in the cruel realities of the sport. Sheeraz has shown immense courage by getting back in the boxing business against Berlanga in the American’s backyard. A win would make Sheeraz one of the sport’s hottest properties.
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