Hamzah Sheeraz is going to need to raise his game for his 12-round headliner fight against the big puncher Edgar Berlanga for their super middleweight fight on July 12th at the Louis Armstrong Stadium in Queens, New York.
Both fighters are competing at the novice level and have yet to prove themselves as top fighters at 168 pounds. They’re both highly popular without having proven that they’re capable of beating the division’s top killers.
Fans believe Berlanga-Sheeraz should be stowed away on the undercard, below these fights on July 12th:
- Shakur Stevenson vs. William Zepeda
- Alberto Puello vs. Subriel Matias
- David Morrell vs. Imam Khataev
Sheeraz vs. Berlanga: Fight Preview
Both of these fighters are on the mediocre side and are viewed as classic examples of hype jobs. However, Berlanga and Sheeraz have punching power that masks their marginal skills, and that makes them dangerous for anyone in the emptied-out, talentless super middleweight division.
Future 168-lb Star?
This fight could determine who emerges as the next star in the 168-lb division. The weight class is barren of popular fighters now, and the winner of Berlanga-Sheeraz could fill the void left by David Benavidez’s exit.
Sheeraz’s last performance against WBC middleweight champion Carlos Adames last February leaves a lot of doubt about whether he has the talent to mix it with A-level fighters. Adames is far from being an elite-level fighter, but he dominated Hamzah, 26, making him look bad. If not for the judges bailing Sheeraz out by giving him a 12-round draw, he’d have suffered his first career defeat.
Berlanga’s Hometown Advantage
The Brooklyn, New York native Berlanga (23-1, 18 KOs) is the favorite and will be fighting in front of his home crowd. That would count for something if the fight was expected to go the full 12 rounds. The judges are unlikely to have a say in this fight, as it’s expected to end by knockout.
That’s a good thing for Sheeraz (21-0-1, 17 KOs), because he could find it hard to win a decision fighting Edgar in New York. You’ve got to imagine that fans will be showing a lot of approval for every punch that Berlanga lands in the fight.
Sheeraz Training: Outside Fighting
In a training clip posted today of Sheeraz working out, you can see that he’s mostly staying on the outside, using his reach and moving. He’s going to need to fight like this to avoid Berlanga’s big power shots. It would be too risky for Hamzah to stay in reach of Berlanga, especially in the early rounds when he’s more dangerous.
Berlanga has a slight experience advantage over Sheeraz, given his fight against Canelo Alvarez last September. Even though Edgar lost almost every round of the fight, going the distance with Canelo gave him confidence that he could stay in with the top fighters in the division. It’s questionable whether Canelo is still the best at 168, but it still means something that Berlanga went the distance with him.
Other than Adames, Sheeraz hasn’t fought any notable opponents. His best win came against Austin Williams, a flawed contender with a record built up on tomato cans. Aside from being staggered early by Austin, Hamzah was in full command the entire fight and perormed well.
😳 @sheeraz_hamzah is hitting with ahead of his fight with @EdgarBerlangaJr in New York 💥#BerlangaSheeraz | July 12th | @ringmagazine pic.twitter.com/NxyBxVW0sC
— Queensberry Promotions (@Queensberry) June 16, 2025
Last Updated on 06/17/2025
